Single photon detection with amorphous silicon-based microchannel plates: A Monte Carlo model

Microchannel plates based on amorphous silicon have the inherent capability to overcome the existing spatial and temporal resolution limitations of single photon detectors. A Monte Carlo model-based study is presented here that serves to exploit their full potential. The dynamics of electron multiplication throughout the microchannels in the presence of an electric field is modelled based on electron emission models and experimental measurements. The geometrical limits for suitable amplification and the expected time resolution of amorphous silicon based microchannel plates are presented. Furthermore, the model is implemented in a finite element method simulator to estimate electron multiplication gain and time response for channels with various geometries. With gains above 1000 and timing jitters below 3 ps that are shown for selected geometries, AMCPs enable ultrafast measurements for medical applications and single photon detection.

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Christophe Ballif, Samira Alexandra Frey, Janina Christine Isabelle Löffler, Jonathan Emanuel Thomet
2022
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https://infoscience.epfl.ch/record/294300?ln=fr

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Towards Single Photon Detection with Amorphous Silicon Based Microchannel Plates

Janina Christine Isabelle Löffler

An exciting new approach for microchannel plate (MCP) detectors could help make them suitable for single photon detection. State-of-the-art clean room technology allows amorphous silicon based microchannel plates (AMCPs) to take a variety of shapes. This versatility together with a new form of on-chip integration enables detector configurations that can be manufactured to meet the exact requirements of the application. The collection efficiency can be increased to 100% while maintaining a maximum gain. With channel lengths of 60 um and diameters below 3 um, the detector gains are now in a range where low level signals can be amplified. In this thesis, we extend the fabrication possibilities of MCP detectors towards structures with diameters in the sub micrometer range, where we expect high gains and excellent timing. We found the minimum channel length of AMCPs with high gain to be 30 um. We show that the timing of such narrow channels is one of the fastest signal amplifications compared to other technologies. Their fast timing together with their high spatial resolution make them a valuable solution for applications where sub millimeter precision is crucial, for example in medical imaging. The results of the thesis alleviate the fabrication process of AMCPs, as the deposition of thick amorphous silicon layers has been identified as the current bottleneck of the fabrication. Through the detailed analysis of secondary emission properties and the implementation in a Monte-Carlo model we can now confidently predict the response of AMCPs with various shapes to a single incident electron. This now provides a quick path to adapt the AMCP configuration directly to the application and makes them a viable alternative to other single photon detectors.

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