Technology Commercialization and Partnerships | BSA 09-26: Portable, Low-Power, Radiation-Hard Radiation Detector

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Category: electronics & instrumentation

BSA 09-26: Portable, Low-Power, Radiation-Hard Radiation Detector

BNL Reference Number: BSA 09-26

Patent Status: Application Number 20120313196 was published on December 13, 2012

Summary

(a) A single cell of the 3D-Trench electrode Si detector (hexangular type), and (b) an array of cells to form an independent coaxial detector array.

This dynamic, three-dimensional Trench detector is a portable, low-power, radiation-hard, radiation detector with improved charge collection efficiency and enhanced capabilities for spectral analyses. This detector has a unique plurality of electrodes, at least one of which is formed as a three-dimensional trench surrounding a thin columnar electrode.

Description

This design uses a central column of one type and a trench electrode of the complementary type. The 3D Trench detector includes a bulk semiconductor material with first and second surfaces separated from each other by a bulk thickness. The first and second electrodes extend into the bulk along the bulk thickness, separated from each other by a predetermined electrode distance. The first electrode completely surrounds the second along essentially their entire distance such that they are substantially concentric. The maximum electric field in this novel configuration is approximately an order of magnitude lower than that generated in columnar detectors. The electric field in the detector can be reduced by a factor of nearly 10 with an optimal 3D-Trench configuration where the junction is on the surrounding trench side. The full depletion voltage in this optimal configuration can be up to 7 times less than that of a conventional 3D detector.

Benefits

This detector, specially hardened against high-energy radiation, features an electric field that is much better defined than that of previous detectors�"very homogeneous without low- or no-field regions (saddle points). The low semiconductor-based power means that versions of the detector can be made portable, powered by battery system,s and deployed in a wide range of fields.

Applications and Industries

Radiation detectors fulfill important needs in fields such as satellites, space-based communications, astronomy, high energy physics, personnel dosimetry, PET scanners, and strategic defense initiatives including cargo scanning. This detector is especially well suited for detection of high-fluence ionizing radiation.