Low-resistivity photon-transparent window attached to photo-sensitive silicon detector

Patent · Tue Feb 15 00:00:00 EST 2000

OSTI ID:872857

Holland, Stephen Edward ^[1]

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1. Hercules, CA

The invention comprises a combination of a low resistivity, or electrically conducting, silicon layer that is transparent to long or short wavelength photons and is attached to the backside of a photon-sensitive layer of silicon, such as a silicon wafer or chip. The window is applied to photon sensitive silicon devices such as photodiodes, charge-coupled devices, active pixel sensors, low-energy x-ray sensors and other radiation detectors. The silicon window is applied to the back side of a photosensitive silicon wafer or chip so that photons can illuminate the device from the backside without interference from the circuit printed on the frontside. A voltage sufficient to fully deplete the high-resistivity photosensitive silicon volume of charge carriers is applied between the low-resistivity back window and the front, patterned, side of the device. This allows photon-induced charge created at the backside to reach the front side of the device and to be processed by any circuitry attached to the front side. Using the inventive combination, the photon sensitive silicon layer does not need to be thinned beyond standard fabrication methods in order to achieve full charge-depletion in the silicon volume. In one embodiment, the inventive backside window is applied to high resistivity silicon to allow backside illumination while maintaining charge isolation in CCD pixels.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC03-76SF00098
• Assignee: Regents of University of California (Oakland, CA)
• Patent Number(s): US 6025585
• Application Number: 08/961868
• OSTI ID: 872857
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

low-resistivity
photon-transparent
window
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photo-sensitive
silicon
detector
comprises
combination
resistivity
electrically
conducting
layer
transparent
wavelength
photons
backside
photon-sensitive
wafer
chip
applied
photon
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photodiodes
charge-coupled
active
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frontside
voltage
sufficient
deplete
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circuitry
inventive
thinned
standard
fabrication
methods
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charge-depletion
embodiment
allow
illumination
maintaining
isolation
ccd
pixels
silicon device
charge carrier
transparent window
charge-coupled device
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charge carriers
coupled device
silicon layer
electrically conducting
radiation detector
radiation detectors
silicon wafer
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sensitive silicon
charge created
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