HIGH QUANTUM EFFICIENCY GEIGER-MODE AVALANCHE DIODES INCLUDING HIGH SENSITIVITY PHOTON MIXING STRUCTURES AND ARRAYS THEREOF

• Main Author: FINKELSTEIN, Hod
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 28.07.2021
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; ELECTRIC SOLID STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES

A photodetector device includes a semiconductor material layer and at least one photodiode in the semiconductor material layer. The at least one photodiode is configured to be biased beyond a breakdown voltage thereof to generate respective electrical signals responsive to detection of incident photons. The respective electrical signals are independent of an optical power of the incident photons. A textured region is coupled to the semiconductor material layer and includes optical structures positioned to interact with the incident photons in the detection thereof by the at least one photodiode. Two or more photodiodes may define a pixel of the photodetector device, and the optical structures may be configured to direct the incident photons to any of the two or more photodiodes of the pixel.