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Design and simulation of a novel 4H-SiC LGAD timing device

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Abstract

Purpose

Silicon-based fast timing detectors have been widely used in high-energy physics, nuclear physics, space exploration and other fields in recent years. However, silicon detectors often require complex low-temperature systems when operating in irradiation environment, and their detection performance decreases with the increase in the irradiation dose. Compared with silicon, silicon carbide (SiC) has a wider band gap, higher atomic displacement energy, saturated electron drift velocity and thermal conductivity. Simultaneously, the low-gain avalanche detector avoids cross talk and high noise from high multiplication due to its moderate gain, and thus can maintain a high detector signal without increasing noise.

Aim

Thus, the 4H-SiC particle detector, especially the low-gain avalanche detector, has the potential to detect the minimal ionizing particles under extreme irradiation and high-temperature environments.

Method

In this work, the emphasis was placed on the design of a 4H-SiC low-gain avalanche detector (LGAD), especially the epitaxial structure and technical process which play main roles. In addition, a simulation tool—RASER (RAdiation SEmiconductoR)—was developed to simulate the performances including the electrical properties and time resolution of the 4H-SiC LGAD we proposed.

Conclusion

The working voltage and gain effectiveness of the LGAD were verified by the simulation of electrical performances. The time resolution of the LGAD is (35.0 ± 0.2) ps under the electrical field of −800 V, which is better than that of the 4H-SiC PIN detector.

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Acknowledgements

This work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 11961141014, 12205321, 11905092, 12105132, 11705078 and 92067110), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2022M710085), the State Key Laboratory of Particle Detection and Electronics (Nos. SKLPDE-ZZ-202218 and SKLPDE-KF-202313), Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province Youth Fund (ZR202111120161) under CERN RD50 Collaboration framework and the Opening Foundation of Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory (No. 2021SLABFK04).

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Author notes

  1. Keqi Wang and Tao Yang have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institution of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Keqi Wang, Tao Yang, Chenxi Fu, Zaiyi Li, Xin Shi, Congcong Wang, Zijun Xu & Xiyuan Zhang

  2. Department of Physics, Liaoning University, Shenyang, 110036, Liaoning, China

    Keqi Wang, Li Gong & Xiaoshen Kang

  3. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Tao Yang, Chenxi Fu & Zaiyi Li

  4. Department of Physics, Jilin University, Changchun, 130015, Jilin, China

    Chenxi Fu, Hangrui Shi & Weimin Song

  5. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Heilongjiang University of Science and Technology, Harbin, 150022, Heilongjiang, China

    Songting Jiang

  6. College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, 030006, Shanxi, China

    Zaiyi Li

  7. Shandong Institute of Advanced Technology, Jinan, 250100, China

    Suyu Xiao

  8. Shandong University, Jinan, 250100, China

    Suyu Xiao

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  1. Keqi Wang
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Correspondence to Xiyuan Zhang.

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We declare that we have no financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that can inappropriately influence our work, and there is no professional or other personal interest of any nature or kind in any product, service and/or company that could be construed as influencing the position presented in, or the review of, the manuscript entitled “Design and simulation of a novel 4H-SiC LGAD timing device.”

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Wang, K., Yang, T., Fu, C. et al. Design and simulation of a novel 4H-SiC LGAD timing device. Radiat Detect Technol Methods (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41605-023-00431-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41605-023-00431-y

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