AVALANCHE PHOTODIODE DETECTORS FOR THE SUPERCONDUCTING SUPER COLLIDER

A HIGH SPEED AVALANCHE PHOTODIODE (APD) IS BEING INVESTIGATED THAT WOULD MEET THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE CENTRAL TRACKER DETECTOR SYSTEM OF THE SUPERCONDUCTING SUPER COLLIDER (SSC). THE APPROACH WOULD MODIFY EXISTING APD DESIGNS TO YIELD A DEVICE WITH LOWER DARK CURRENT AND FASTER CYCLE TIME WHEN OPERATED IN THE SINGLE-PHOTON COUNTING GEIGER MODE. CONSIDERATIONS INCLUDE THE ADAPTABILITY OF THE DIODE TO ACTIVE QUENCH CIRCUITRY, AS WELL AS PROBABLE INCORPORATION OF BOTH THE APD AND THE QUENCH CIRCUIT IN A SINGLE HYBRID OR MONOLITHIC INTEGRATED CIRCUIT DESIGN. THE PROJECT SHOULD RESULT IN A PRACTICAL, COST-EFFECTIVE PHOTODIODE TECHNOLOGY FOR CONSTRUCTING LARGE SCALE DETECTORS. COMPATIBILITY WITH HIGH VOLUME, LOW COST MANUFACTURE IS A MAJOR PROGRAM OBJECTIVE. IN PHASE I, A DESIGN IS BEING DEVELOPED TO MEET SSC NEEDS. A DEVICE WILL BE FABRICATED BASED ON THIS DESIGN. AFTER TESTING THIS DEVICE, AN IMPROVED DEVICE WILL BE FABRICATED AND TESTED TO DEMONSTRATE THE TECHNOLOGY.