A tunable single photon avalanche diode pixel with improved time resolution
Conference
Habib, MHU, Shawkat, MSA, McFarlane, N. (2017). A tunable single photon avalanche diode pixel with improved time resolution
. 2017-December 1-3. 10.1109/ICSENS.2017.8234050
Habib, MHU, Shawkat, MSA, McFarlane, N. (2017). A tunable single photon avalanche diode pixel with improved time resolution
. 2017-December 1-3. 10.1109/ICSENS.2017.8234050
Perimeter gated single photon avalanche diodes (PGSPAD) contain an additional terminal to prevent premature breakdown and tune the noise floor. We report a PGSPAD based pixel where reduced dead time is accomplished using simple readout electronics for a compact, area efficient readout. During the dead time of a PGSPAD, defined by the avalanche-quench-reset cycle, it is unable to detect incident photons. This limits the output dynamic range. To overcome this limitation, a pixel with four identical PGSPADs and simple electronics has been designed and fabricated in a standard 0.5μm, 2-poly, 3-metal CMOS process. Simulation and experimental results show a reduction in the dead time approximately equal to the number of pixels. For a single device with approximately the same total area the dead time was 10μs, while the use of 4 sub-pixels reduced the dead time to 2.5μs. A 3 × 3 pixel array demonstrates the nonuniformity correction.
