Single-photon avalanche diode arrays and CMOS microelectronics for counting, timing, and imaging quantum events

Aim of the paper is to discuss design, fabrication and performances of Single-Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) arrays developed at the SPADLab of Politecnico di Milano, in both custom and fully-CMOS technologies. Applications span from 2D imagers for high sensitivity fast frame-rate (close to Mframe/s) video acquisitions, to molecular imaging, to functional time-resolved Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) of organs and tissues, to Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (FCS), Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging (FLIM) with 30psFWHM photon timing resolution. Various microelectronic single-chip detection modules and monolithic SPAD arrays will be presented and discussed.

[1]  T. Hiruma,et al.  Photonics Technology for Molecular Imaging , 2005, Proceedings of the IEEE.

[2]  S. Cova,et al.  Monolithic active-quenching and active-reset circuit for single-photon avalanche detectors , 2003, IEEE J. Solid State Circuits.

[3]  Franco Zappa,et al.  Variable-load quenching circuit for single-photon avalanche diodes. , 2008, Optics express.

[4]  A. Lacaita,et al.  Avalanche photodiodes and quenching circuits for single-photon detection. , 1996, Applied optics.

[5]  Andrea L. Lacaita,et al.  Avalanche semiconductor detector for single optical photons with a time resolution of 60 ps , 1987 .

[6]  Bradley E. Schaefer.  Search for gamma ray burst counterparts , 2008 .

[7]  Franco Zappa,et al.  Complete single-photon counting and timing module in a microchip. , 2005, Optics letters.

[8]  J. Pawley,et al.  Handbook of Biological Confocal Microscopy , 1990, Springer US.

[9]  Franco Zappa,et al.  High-sensitivity photodetectors with on-chip pinhole for laser scanning microscopy , 2000 .

[10]  Franco Zappa,et al.  Fast single-photon imager acquires 1024 pixels at 100 kframe/s , 2009, Electronic Imaging.

[11]  I Rech,et al.  Monolithic active quenching and picosecond timing circuit suitable for large-area single-photon avalanche diodes. , 2006, Optics express.

[12]  D. O'connor,et al.  Time-Correlated Single Photon Counting , 1984 .

[13]  Antonio Francesco Longoni,et al.  A study of the operation and performances of an avalanche diode as a single photon detector , 1975 .

[14]  Axel Bergmann,et al.  High-speed FLIM data acquisition by time-correlated single-photon counting , 2004, SPIE BiOS.

[15]  Franco Zappa,et al.  High-performance silicon single-photon avalanche diode array , 2009, Defense + Commercial Sensing.

[16]  Roberto Roncella,et al.  Photon counting arrays for astrophysics , 2007 .

[17]  A. Lacaita,et al.  Physics and numerical simulation of single photon avalanche diodes , 1997 .

[18]  S. Cova,et al.  Towards picosecond resolution with single-photon avalanche diodes , 1981 .

[19]  Massimo Ghioni,et al.  Improving the performance of commercially available Geiger-mode avalanche photodiodes , 1991 .

[20]  Franco Zappa,et al.  SPAD detection head with 32 fully-parallel channels for time-tagging single-photons at 3μs , 2009, OPTO.

[21]  A Tosi,et al.  Fully-integrated CMOS single photon counter. , 2007, Optics express.

[22]  Andrew D. MacGregor,et al.  Photon-counting techniques with silicon avalanche photodiodes , 1993, Photonics West - Lasers and Applications in Science and Engineering.

[23]  Lloyd M. Davis,et al.  Single photon avalanche diode for single molecule detection , 1993, Optical Society of America Annual Meeting.

[24]  Andrea L. Lacaita,et al.  Double epitaxy improves single-photon avalanche diode performance , 1989 .

[25]  A. Simoni,et al.  CMOS Single-Photon Avalanche Diode Array for Time-Resolved Fluorescence Detection , 2006, 2006 Proceedings of the 32nd European Solid-State Circuits Conference.

[26]  Edoardo Charbon,et al.  A single photon avalanche diode array fabricated in 0.35-μm CMOS and based on an event-driven readout for TCSPC experiments , 2006, SPIE Optics East.

[27]  Alberto Tosi,et al.  Electronics for single photon avalanche diode arrays , 2007 .

[28]  Ivan Rech,et al.  Monolithic silicon matrix detector with 50 μm photon counting pixels , 2007 .

[29]  S. Cova,et al.  High-rate quantum key distribution at short wavelength: Performance analysis and evaluation of silicon single photon avalanche diodes , 2003 .

[30]  Ivan Rech,et al.  Multipixel single-photon avalanche diode array for parallel photon counting applications , 2009 .

[31]  S. Suzuki,et al.  Ultrafast microchannel plate photomultipliers. , 1988, Applied optics.

[32]  Robert K. Tyson.  Principles of Adaptive Optics , 1991 .

[33]  A. Tosi,et al.  SPICE modeling of single photon avalanche diodes , 2009 .

[34]  A. Tosi,et al.  Principles and features of Single Photon Avalanche Diode Arrays , 2007 .

[35]  Adam Burrows,et al.  Supernova explosions in the Universe , 2000, Nature.

[36]  Carlo Samori,et al.  An integrated active-quenching circuit for single-photon avalanche diodes , 2000, IEEE Trans. Instrum. Meas..

[37]  S. Cova,et al.  Compact active quenching circuit for fast photon counting with avalanche photodiodes , 1996 .

[38]  Sanja Zlatanovic,et al.  Performance trade-offs in single-photon avalanche diode miniaturization. , 2007, The Review of scientific instruments.

[39]  Andrea L. Lacaita,et al.  20-ps timing resolution with single-photon avalanche diodes , 1989 .

[40]  J G Rarity,et al.  Characterization of silicon avalanche photodiodes for photon correlation measurements. 2: Active quenching. , 1987, Applied optics.