Development of radiation detectors based on hydrogenated amorphous silicon and its alloys
- Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States)
Hydrogenated amorphous silicon and related materials have been applied to radiation detectors, utilizing their good radiation resistance and the feasibility of making deposits over a large area at low cost. Effects of deposition parameters on various material properties of a-Si:H have been studied to produce a material satisfying the requirements for specific detection application. Thick(-~50 μm), device quality a-Si:H p-i-n diodes for direct detection of minimum ionizing particles have been prepared with low internal stress by a combination of low temperature growth, He-dilution of silane, and post annealing. The structure of the new film contained voids and tiny crystalline inclusions and was different from the one observed in conventional a-Si:H. Deposition on patterned substrates was attempted as an alternative to controlling deposition parameters to minimize substrate bending and delamination of thick a-Si:H films. Growth on an inversed-pyramid pattern reduced the substrate bending by a factor of 3 ≈ 4 for the same thickness film. Thin (0.1 ≈ 0.2 μm) films of a-Si:H and a-SiC:H have been applied to microstrip gas chambers to control gain instabilities due to charges on the substrate. Light sensitivity of the a-Si:H sheet resistance was minimized and the surface resistivity was successfully` controlled in the range of 1012 ≈ 1017 Ω/(four gradient) by carbon alloying and boron doping. Performance of the detectors with boron-doped a-Si:C:H layers was comparable to that of electronic-conducting glass. Hydrogen dilution of silane has been explored to improve electrical transport properties of a-Si:H material for high speed photo-detectors and TFT applications.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC03-76SF00098
- OSTI ID:
- 102299
- Report Number(s):
- LBL-37290; ON: DE95016434; TRN: 95:019389
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: TH: Thesis (Ph.D.); PBD: Apr 1995
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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