New developments in CdTe and CdZnTe detectors for X and γ-ray applications

There has been considerable recent progress in II-VI semiconductor material and in methods for improving performance of the associated radiation detectors. New high resistivity CdZnTe material, new contact technologies, new detector structures, new electronic correction methods have opened the field of nuclear and x-ray imaging for industrial and medical applications. The purpose of this paper is to review new developments in several of these fields. In addition, we will present some recent results at LETI concerning first the CdTe 2-D imaging system (20 × 30 mm² with 400 × 600 pixels) for dental radiology and second the CdZnTe fast pulse correction method applied to a 5 × 5 × 5 mm³ CdZnTe detector (energy resolution = 5% for detection efficiency of 85% at 122 keV) for medical imaging.     

Growth and characterization of hot-wall epitaxial CdTe on (111) HgCdTe and CdZnTe substrates

Thin CdTe films were deposited by hot-wall epitaxy (HWE) on (111) HgCdTe and CdZnTe substrates at temperatures from about 140 to 335°C. X-ray rocking curves were used to show that crystal quality of the CdTe (111)B films improved as substrate temperature increased from 140 to about 250°C. Rocking curve values for full width at half maximum (FWHM) decreased from 2–4 degrees at 140–150°C to less than 100 arc-s at 250°C, and a FWHM of 59 arc-s was the lowest value observed near 250°C. The FWHM of the HWE CdTe was found to be insensitive to growth rate below about 400Å/min, but increased to four degrees at 1250Å/min. X-ray diffraction confirmed that films grown on the B-face at higher temperatures were epitaxial, but contained a significant volume fraction, 35% to 50%, of rotational in-plane twins. Electron microscopy confirmed a coarse twin density, and photoluminescence spectra showed an absence of excitonic emission in the HWE films. Simultaneous growth on two (111) HgCdTe substrates with different surface polarities between 230°C and 335°C showed that deposition rate on the A-face decreased relative to that on the B-face as temperature increased. Films grown on the B-face exhibited better surface morphologies than those grown on the A-face.     

Vertical bridgman techniques to homogenize zinc composition of CdZnTe substrates

In order to improve the Zn homogeneity along the axial direction of CdZnTe boule, we have employed a modified Bridgman technique using a (Cd, Zn) alloy source in communication with the melt, whose temperature has been gradually changed from 800 to 840°C during growth. Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) measurements of Zn composition in the boule shows an excellent homogeneity of Zn along the axis of the CdZnTe boule compared with results in a boule grown by using a fixed source temperature. We have performed a numerical simulation to obtain the approximate temperatures of additional heating and cooling needed to improve the radial Zn homogeneity. CdZnTe boule has been grown by seeded vertical Bridgman furnace with two zones of heater and cooler. Ultraviolet/visible spectroscopic measurements of Zn composition over the length of the boule indicate that the radial distribution of Zn composition is very homogeneous in the body region of the boule, where the radial variation of Zn composition is ±0.0005.     

MOCVD生长的CdZnTe／ZnTe多量子附的激子光学特性

用常压ＭＯＣＶＤ方法在ＧａＡｓ（１００）衬底上生长了ＣｄＺｎＴｅ／ＺｎＴｅ多量子阱。在室温下，观测到了ＣｄＺｎＴｅ／ＺｎＴｅ多量子阱的三个谱带发光。根据ＣｄＺｎＴｅ／ＺｎＴｅ多量子阱的吸收光谱和不同激发光强下的发光光谱，分别归结ＣｄＺｎＴｅ／ＺｎＴｅ多量子阱中观测到的三个发光谱带于覆盖层发光、ｎ＝１的重空穴激子发光及杂质发光。     

CdZnTe Crystal Growth by Vertical Gradient Freezing Method

ＣｄＺｎＴｅＣｒｙｓｔａｌＧｒｏｗｔｈｂｙＶｅｒｔｉｃａｌＧｒａｄｉｅｎｔＦｒｅｅｚｉｎｇＭｅｔｈｏｄＨｏｕＱｉｎｇｒｕｎ；ＷａｎｇＪｉｎｙｉ；ＤｅｎｇＪｉｎｃｈｅｎｇ；ＤｕＢｉｎｇ，（侯清润）（王金义）（邓金诚）（杜冰）；ＬｉＭｅｉｒｏｎｇａｎｄＣ...     

坩埚内壁碳膜对Bridgman法生长CdZnTe晶体热应力的影响

采用热弹性模型计算了垂直Bridgman(VB)法生长CdZnTe单晶体过程中的应力场,研究了坩埚内壁碳膜的厚度对晶体内热应力的影响.计算结果表明:晶体边缘与坩埚内壁接触位置的热应力远大于晶体中心处的热应力.晶体生长过程中存在两个高应力区:与坩埚接触的晶体底部与顶部(固/液界面下方)区,两个区的最大应力值在凝固过程中迅速增加,在随后的晶体冷却过程中较缓慢增大.增加碳膜厚度可以显著减小晶体边缘的热应力,然而对晶体中心的热应力影响较小.晶体生长完成85%左右时,用涂石墨坩埚生长的晶体比用石英坩埚生长的晶体的最大热应力小55%以上.     

基于嵌入式系统的能谱型核测井仪器

介绍了能谱型核测井仪的设计方案,其目标是研制适用于铀矿勘查的便携式测井仪,满足测井生产的需要。该仪器采用碲锌镉CdZnTe半导体核辐射探测器,高端的32位嵌入式ARM处理器S3C2410A为仪器系统控制核心,并在此硬件平台上移植了嵌入式Linux操作系统,编写了基于MiniGUI的测井仪监控终端软件。仪器具有实时性、体积小、功耗低、灵敏度高、成本低、便于携带等特点。     

Characterization of CdTe and HgCdTe by Photo-Thermal Excitation Spectroscopy

We report an infrared photo-thermal excitation imaging and spectroscopy study of CdTe and CdZnTe substrates as well as HgCdTe/CdZnTe and HgCdTe/Si epilayers. The applicability, advantages, and limitations of the technique as a tool for both ex situ and in situ monitoring of bandgap, thickness, and growth temperature are discussed. We show that photo-thermal imaging allows for direct visual imaging of the bandgap region of CdTe and CdZnTe substrates. We also show that photo-thermal spectroscopy can provide epilayer thickness information independent of the dielectric function. The method is orthogonal to existing optical characterization techniques and could be combined with them for improved accuracy.     

Simulation of the anode structure for capacitive Frisch grid CdZnTe detectors

CdZnTe (CZT) capacitive Frisch grid detectors can achieve a higher detecting resolution.The anode structure might have an important role in improving the weighting potential distribution of the detectors.In this paper,four anode structures of capacitive Frisch grid structures have been analyzed with FE simulation,based on a 3-dimensional weighting potential analysis.The weighting potential distributions in modified anode devices (Model B,C and D) are optimized compared with a square device (Model A).In model C and D,the abrupt weighting potential can be well modified.However,with increased radius of the circular electrode in Model C the weighting potential platform away from the anode becomes higher and higher and in Model D,the weighting potential does not vary too much.     

碲锌镉晶体常用腐蚀剂的坑形特性研究

大面积、高质量碲锌镉单晶是制备碲镉汞红外焦平面器件的理想衬底材料，而腐蚀法是常用的揭示碲锌镉晶体缺陷和评价晶体质量的方法之一。对碲锌镉晶体常用的Nakagawa、Everson、EAg1和EAg2四种腐蚀剂在碲锌镉材料（111）晶面上的腐蚀坑坑形进行了研究，结果发现，EAg2腐蚀剂在（111）B面上的腐蚀坑为平底坑，Everson腐蚀剂在 (111)B面上产生的腐蚀坑包括平底坑和带有不同倾斜方向坑底的三角锥形坑，进一步的研究还表明，三角锥形坑并未沿着坑底的倾斜方向向下延伸。实验中也首次观察到了EAg腐蚀剂的黑白平底坑。对常用腐蚀剂的坑形特性研究，将有助于更好地利用腐蚀剂开展碲锌镉材料缺陷研究和晶体质量评价工作。