Photon-timing detector module for single-molecule spectroscopy with 60-ps resolution

Advanced fluorescence measurements on single molecules demand single-photon detectors with high-quantum detection efficiency, low noise, and high time resolution. We have developed a compact (82/spl times/60/spl times/30 mm) and versatile single-photon timing module (SPTM), based on a planar epitaxial single photon avalanche diodes (SPAD) working with a monolithic integrated active quenching and active reset circuit (i-AQC) and cooled by a Peltier element. The main operating parameters are computer controlled via RS-232 interface and the photon counting rate can be continuously monitored. The photon detection efficiency is 45% at 500 nm with cooling at -15/spl deg/C, the dark counting rate is 5 c/s with SPAD operating at 5 V excess bias voltage, 10c/s operating at 10 V. The time resolution obtained with tightly focused illumination has 60-ps full-width at half-maximum. Comparative tests with the SPTM prototype and with an advanced commercially available photon counting module confirmed that the time resolution and sensitivity of the SPTM make it possible to resolve and measure even short lifetime components of a single molecule. The SPTM thus made possible experiments leading to a deeper insight into angstrom-scale structural changes of single-protein molecules.     

Single Photon Counting Module Based on Large Area APD and Novel Logic Circuit for Quench and Reset Pulse Generation

We present the design, implementation, and characterization of a single-photon counting module (SPCM) based on large-area avalanche photodiode (APD) and new logic circuit based on TTL integrated circuits (ICs) for generating precise quench and reset delays. Low dark count rate, high linearity of 2 MHz, maximum dynamic range of 12 MHz, and minimum dead time of 35 ns have been achieved with 0.2 mm peltier-cooled single photon avalanche diode (SPAD) [model C30902S-DTC, Perkin Elmer Optoelectronics (PKI)]. The developed module was fiberized and tested for the detection of fluorescently labeled DNA sequences. Detection sensitivity at the level of single fluorescent molecule has been demonstrated.     

Compact CMOS active quenching/recharge circuit for SPAD arrays

Avalanche diodes operating in Geiger mode are able to detect single photon events. They can be employed to photon counting and time‐of‐flight estimation. In order to ensure proper operation of these devices, the avalanche current must be rapidly quenched, and, later on, the initial equilibrium must be restored. In this paper, we present an active quenching/recharge circuit specially designed to be integrated in the form of an array of single‐photon avalanche diode (SPAD) detectors. Active quenching and recharge provide benefits like an accurately controllable pulse width and afterpulsing reduction. In addition, this circuit yields one of the lowest reported area occupations and power consumptions. The quenching mechanism employed is based on a positive feedback loop that accelerates quenching right after sensing the avalanche current. We have employed a current starved inverter for the regulation of the hold‐off time, which is more compact than other reported controllable delay implementations. This circuit has been fabricated in a standard 0.18 µm complementary metal‐oxide‐semiconductor (CMOS) technology. The SPAD has a quasi‐circular shape of 12 µm diameter active area. The fill factor is about 11%. The measured time resolution of the detector is 187 ps. The photon‐detection efficiency (PDE) at 540 nm wavelength is about 5% at an excess voltage of 900 mV. The break‐down voltage is 10.3 V. A dark count rate of 19 kHz is measured at room temperature. Worst case post‐layout simulations show a 117 ps quenching and 280 ps restoring times. The dead time can be accurately tuned from 5 to 500 ns. The pulse‐width jitter is below 1.8 ns when dead time is set to 40 ns. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of Hot-Carrier Luminescence for Infrared Single-Photon Upconversion and Readout

We propose and analyze a new method for single-photon wavelength up-conversion using optical coupling between a primary infrared (IR) single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) and a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) silicon SPAD, which are fused through a silicon dioxide passivation layer. A primary IR photon induces an avalanche in the IR SPAD. The photons produced by hot-carrier recombination are subsequently sensed by the silicon SPAD, thus, allowing for on-die data processing. Because the devices are fused through their passivation layers, lattice mismatch issues between the semiconductor materials are avoided. We develop a model for calculating the conversion efficiency of the device, and use realistic device parameters to estimate up to 97% upconversion efficiency and 33% system efficiency, limited by the IR detector alone. The new scheme offers a low-cost means to manufacture dense IR-SPAD arrays, while significantly reducing their afterpulsing. We show that this high-speed compact method for upconverting IR photons is feasible and efficient.     

High-Performance InGaAs/InP Single-Photon Avalanche Photodiode

In_0.53Ga_0.47As/InP avalanche photodiodes with very low dark current have been characterized in gated mode for single-photon detection. A 40-mum-diameter single-photon avalanche diodes (SPAD) exhibited high single-photon detection efficiency (SPDE = 45% at 1.31 mum), low dark count rate (DCR = 12 kHz), and low noise-equivalent power (NEP=4.5X 10^-17W/Hz^1/2 W/Hz) at 200 K and 1.31 mum. A timing resolution of 140 ps was achieved with an SPDE of 45%. In addition, the dark current and DCR of a 4X4 SPAD array are reported.     

Progress in Silicon Single-Photon Avalanche Diodes

Silicon single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) are nowadays a solid-state alternative to photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) in single-photon counting (SPC) and time-correlated single-photon counting (TCSPC) over the visible spectral range up to 1-mum wavelength. SPADs implemented in planar technology compatible with CMOS circuits offer typical advantages of microelectronic devices (small size, ruggedness, low voltage, low power, etc.). Furthermore, they have inherently higher photon detection efficiency, since they do not rely on electron emission in vacuum from a photocathode as do PMTs, but instead on the internal photoelectric effect. However, PMTs offer much wider sensitive area, which greatly simplifies the design of optical systems; they also attain remarkable performance at high counting rate, and offer picosecond timing resolution with microchannel plate models. In order to make SPAD detectors more competitive in a broader range of SPC and TCSPC applications, it is necessary to face several issues in the semiconductor device design and technology. Such issues will be discussed in the context of the two possible approaches to such a challenge: employing a standard industrial high-voltage CMOS technology or developing a dedicated CMOS-compatible technology. Advances recently attained in the development of SPAD detectors will be outlined and discussed with reference to both single-element detectors and integrated detector arrays.     

InGaAsP–InP Avalanche Photodiodes for Single Photon Detection

In this paper, we describe the design, characterization, and modeling of InGaAsP/InP avalanche diodes designed for single photon detection at wavelengths of 1.55 and 1.06 mum. Through experimental and theoretical work, we investigate critical performance parameters of these single photon avalanche diodes (SPADs), including dark count rate (DCR), photon detection efficiency (PDE), and afterpulsing. The models developed for the simulation of device performance provide good agreement with experimental results for all parameters studied. For 1.55-mum SPADs, we report the relationship between DCR and PDE for gated mode operation under a variety of operating conditions. We also describe in detail the dependence of afterpulsing effects on numerous operating conditions, and in particular, we demonstrate and explain a universal functional form that describes the dependence of DCR on hold-off time at any temperature. For 1.06-mum SPADs, we present the experimentally determined relationship between DCR and detection efficiency for free-running operation, as well as simulations complementing the experimental data.     

CMOS imaging for biomedical applications

CMOS photodetectors and imaging systems have shown that they possess adequate performance characteristics to replace CCDs or PMTs in some biomedical applications, thereby providing low power, portable, and cheap integrated bioimaging systems. Some advanced solutions, like novel active pixel sensors that detect ultra-low light levels, and avalanche photodiodes that are integrated in CMOS and perform single photon detection, are addressed in this paper.     

Spectroscopy With Nanostructured Superconducting Single Photon Detectors

Superconducting single-photon detectors (SSPDs) are nanostructured devices made from ultrathin superconducting films. They are typically operated at liquid helium temperature and exhibit high detection efficiency, in combination with very low dark counts, fast response time, and extremely low timing jitter, within a broad wavelength range from ultraviolet to mid-infrared (up to 6 mum). SSPDs are very attractive for applications such as fiber-based telecommunication, where single-photon sensitivity and high photon-counting rates are required. We review the current state-of-the-art in the SSPD research and development, and compare the SSPD performance to the best semiconducting avalanche photodiodes and other superconducting photon detectors. Furthermore, we demonstrate that SSPDs can also be successfully implemented in photon-energy-resolving experiments. Our approach is based on the fact that the size of the hotspot, a nonsuperconducting region generated upon photon absorption, is linearly dependent on the photon energy. We introduce a statistical method, where, by measuring the SSPD system detection efficiency at different bias currents, we are able to resolve the wavelength of the incident photons with a resolution of 50 nm.     

Selenium-based amorphous silicon flat-panel digital X-ray imager for protein crystallography

This work proposes a large-area detector for protein crystallography based on an amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) thin film transistor (TFT) pixel-array backplane and an overlying amorphous selenium (a-Se) photoconductor for direct conversion of incident X-rays into an image charge. To achieve high sensitivity, avalanche multiplication in a-Se is adopted to make the detector sensitive to each incident X-ray. The use of a-Si:H technology enables large-area imaging of protein diffraction patterns at less expense compared to existing charge coupled device (CCD) and imaging plate (IP) detectors. In addition, a theoretical analysis shows that the detector exhibits fast readout speed (readout time <1 s), high dynamic range (~10˚), high sensitivity (~1 X-ray photon), and high detective quantum efficiency (~.7), thus validating its suitability for protein crystallography.     

Low-power compact tunable quenching configuration for minimizing afterpulsing in single-photon avalanche diodes

This paper unveils two efficient free running (FR) quenching circuits with the aim of reducing quenching time (QT) to minimize avalanche charge. Likewise, one circuit is compactly designed with low power consumption, suitable for single-photon avalanche diode ( SPAD) with hold-off time below 10 ns. In second circuit, tunable hold-off and reset-time are provided within a wide range without decreasing QT, which are desirable in many applications. Proper operation and circuit uncertainty is assessed by Monte Carlo analysis in a standard 90-nm complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. In a bid to do a comparison between previously reported circuits and the proposed circuits, they are simulated with same SPAD model and parameters and results corroborate the proposed circuits guarantee active quenching time (AQT) of below 1 ns. Proposed circuits with current and area consumption of 0.74 μA, 32 μm² for 7-ns dead time and 16.2 μA, 93 μm² for 21-ns dead time are more efficient in terms of QT, area, and power consumption in comparison with other works.     

基于UV检测的UHV输电线路起晕电压的试验研究

Corona discharge is being detected by UV imaging detection technology at home and abroad in recent years.This technology is used in the corona tests of conductor bundles in this paper.In order to further research the corona characteristic,optimize geometry parameters and diameter of sub-conductor,and increase corona onset voltage of transmission lines,corona tests of three model conductors which are placed inside the outdoor corona cage are conducted.Corona cage could be used to simulate the corona activities on transmission lines under a low voltage and different conditions in an effective and economical way.Photon which was created by UV light as a result of corona discharge on conductors is detected by the UV detection apparatus.The photon number within unit interval,namely photon counting rate is adopted as the parameter of quantifying the intensity of corona discharge.According to the apparent change of photon number,corona onset voltage can be judged.All tests are conducted under almost same atmosphere condition.Using the method,corona onset voltage is acquired.The results indicate that the tests have a good repeatability,in other words,repeating same test twice same result can be aquired.The corona onset voltage can be acquired exactly from the curve of applied voltage vs.photon counting rate.Therefore UV detection apparatus can not only used to find discharge point exactly,but also applied on corona discharge research and live detection for power equipments.The method using in this paper is proved that is a new available method.     

污秽绝缘子的紫外成像检测

绝缘子积污是电力系统常见的一种现象,严重时可能引起绝缘子串闪络,导致大面积、长时间的停电事故,现已经成为对电网安全最具威胁的因素之一。目前的检测手段存在固有的缺陷和局限性,如红外检测存在检测盲区,不能检测早期故障。笔者研究了如何用紫外成像法检测绝缘子的绝缘状况,采用固体涂层法模拟线路上的绝缘子串积污,通过导电杆对积污绝缘子串加压,用CoroCAM504紫外成像仪观察其紫外成像图。实验结果表明,紫外光子数的最大值与对应时间段的泄漏电流的最大值有着较好的对应关系。在环境湿度较大,如毛毛雨、雾等天气条件下,用紫外成像仪可检测积污程度在a级以上的绝缘子,这为紫外成像仪在工程中的应用提供了一定的依据。现场应用实例也验证了紫外成像检测的有效性。     

High-efficiency photon-number detection for quantum information processing

The visible light photon counter (VLPC) features high quantum efficiency (QE) and low pulse height dispersion. These properties make it ideal for efficient photon-number state detection. The ability to perform efficient photon-number state detection is important in many quantum information processing applications, including recent proposals for performing quantum computation with linear optical elements. In this paper, we investigate the unique capabilities of the VLPC. The efficiency of the detector and cryogenic system is measured at 543 nm wavelengths to be 85%. A picosecond pulsed laser is then used to excite the detector with pulses having average photon numbers ranging from 3-5. The output of the VLPC is used to discriminate photon numbers in a pulse. The error probability for number state discrimination is an increasing function of the number of photons, due to buildup of multiplication noise. This puts an ultimate limit on the ability of the VLPC to do number state detection. For many applications, it is sufficient to discriminate between 1 and more than one detected photon. The VLPC can do this with 99% accuracy.     

Toward a 3-D camera based on single photon avalanche diodes

A three-dimensional (3-D) imager is presented, capable of computing the depth map as well as the intensity scale of a given scene. The heart of the system is a two-dimensional array of single photon avalanche diodes fabricated in standard CMOS technology. The diodes exhibit low-noise equivalent-power high-dynamic range, and superior linearity. The 3-D imager achieves submillimetric precision at a depth-of-field of a few meters. This precision was achieved by averaging over 10 000 measurements. The imager operates using a standard laser source pulsed at 50 MHz with 40-mW peak power and requires no mechanical scanning mechanisms or expensive optical equipment.     

Arrays of InP-based Avalanche Photodiodes for Photon Counting

Arrays of InP-based avalanche photodiodes (APDs) with InGaAsP absorber regions have been fabricated and characterized in the Geiger mode for photon-counting applications. Measurements of APDs with InGaAsP absorbers optimized for 1.06 mum wavelength show dark count rates (DCRs) <20 kHz for room-temperature operation with photon detection efficiency (PDE) up to 50% and a reset or dead time of 1s. APDs with InGaAs absorbers optimized for 1.55 mum wavelength and 240 K temperature have DCRs <20 kHz, PDE up to 45%, and a reset time of ~6 mus. Arrays for both wavelengths have been fabricated and packaged with GaP microlenses (of 100 and 50 mum pitch) and CMOS readout integrated circuits (ROICs). Comparisons are made between ROICs that operate in the framed-readout mode as well as those that operate in continuous-readout mode.     

基于国产InGaAs/InP APD的高速单光子探测

InGaAs/InP雪崩光电二极管(InGaAs/InP APD)是近红外单光子探测器的核心器件之一,其国产化已成为趋势.InGaAs/InP APD工作于1.25 GHz门控盖革模式下,由于APD本身的电容特性,单光子触发产生的雪崩电信号被尖峰噪声所湮没,采用低通滤波的方法可以将有效雪崩信号从尖峰噪声提取出来.为了探讨国产APD的参数水平,对不同温度不同探测效率下国产InGaAs/InP APD的暗计数及后脉冲概率,时间抖动性等相关性能参数进行了测量,并与国外数据进行了对比.当国产InGaAs/InP APD工作于-25 ℃,探测效率10 ％时,暗计数可低至9.9 X10 7/gatc,后脉冲仅为1.5这表明在InGaAs/InP APD这一领域,我国已接近国外水平,但仍有一定的进步空间.     

紫外成像技术在电晕放电检测中影响因素的试验研究

介绍了电力设备电晕放电检测中紫外成像技术的检测原理,针对紫外成像检测中的影响因素进行了理论分析,并在1 000 kV变电站电力设备电晕放电测试过程中对主要影响因素进行了试验研究。试验研究结果得到了测试距离、检测仪器增益与光子计数率间的关系曲线,对比了不同环境湿度下的紫外成像检测结果,验证了理论分析结论,对规范紫外成像技术在电力设备电晕放电检测中的应用积累了实测经验,并对紫外成像检测结果的分析评价具有一定的借鉴价值。     

适用于探地雷达应用的低过冲平衡脉冲发生器

设计了一种新型的超宽带ns级低过冲平衡脉冲发生器.该脉冲发生器包含驱动电路、雪崩三极管脉冲电路和脉冲整形电路3部分,驱动电路用以锐化触发脉冲;雪崩三极管脉冲电路采用独特的晶体管级联结构产生大幅度的高斯脉冲;脉冲整形电路利用并联端接电阻网络和肖特基二极管减小信号反射,最后使用巴仑产生平衡的高斯脉冲,该电路最高可以在300 KV脉冲重复频率下正常工作.测量结果表明,在100 KV脉冲重频时该脉冲发生器可以输出一对峰峰值为230 V、前沿为1.3 ns的平衡脉冲,并有着极小的振铃和过冲.这些特征说明,该脉冲发生器在探地雷达应用中有着更深探测距离和更快数据处理速度的优势.