1st Edition

Compound Semiconductor Radiation Detectors

By Alan Owens Copyright 2012
    567 Pages 18 Color & 165 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    567 Pages 18 Color & 165 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    Although elemental semiconductors such as silicon and germanium are standard for energy dispersive spectroscopy in the laboratory, their use for an increasing range of applications is becoming marginalized by their physical limitations, namely the need for ancillary cooling, their modest stopping powers, and radiation intolerance. Compound semiconductors, on the other hand, encompass such a wide range of physical and electronic properties that they have become viable competitors in a number of applications. Compound Semiconductor Radiation Detectors is a consolidated source of information on all aspects of the use of compound semiconductors for radiation detection and measurement.

    Serious Competitors to Germanium and Silicon Radiation Detectors

    Wide-gap compound semiconductors offer the ability to operate in a range of hostile thermal and radiation environments while still maintaining sub-keV spectral resolution at X-ray wavelengths. Narrow-gap materials offer the potential of exceeding the spectral resolution of germanium by a factor of three. However, while compound semiconductors are routinely used at infrared and optical wavelengths, their development in other wavebands has been plagued by material and fabrication problems. So far, only a few have evolved sufficiently to produce commercial detection systems.

    From Crystal Growth to Spectroscopic Performance

    Bringing together information scattered across many disciplines, this book summarizes the current status of research in compound semiconductor radiation detectors. It examines the properties, growth, and characterization of compound semiconductors as well as the fabrication of radiation sensors, with particular emphasis on the X- and gamma-ray regimes. It explores the limitations of compound semiconductors and discusses current efforts to improve spectral performances, pointing to where future discoveries may lie.

    A timely resource for the established researcher, this book serves as a comprehensive and illustrated reference on material science, crystal growth, metrology, detector physics, and spectroscopy. It can also be used as a textbook for those new to the field of compound semiconductors and their application to radiation detection and measurement.

    Semiconductors
    Metals, Semiconductors, and Insulators
    Energy Band Formation
    General Properties of the Bandgap
    Carrier Mobility
    Effective Mass
    Carrier Velocity
    Conduction in Semiconductors

    Growth Techniques
    Crystal Lattices
    Underlying Crystal Structure of Compound Semiconductors
    Crystal Formation
    Crystal Defects
    Crystal Growth
    Bulk Growth Techniques
    Discussion
    Epitaxy
    Growth Techniques: VPE, LPE, MBE, and MOCVD

    Detector Fabrication
    Mechanical Processing Overview
    Detector Characterization

    Contacting Systems
    Metal Semiconductor Interfaces
    Schottky Barriers
    Current Transport across a Schottky Barrier
    Ohmic Contacts
    Contactless (Proximity Effect) Readout

    Radiation Detection and Measurement
    Interaction of Radiation with Matter
    Charged Particles
    Neutron Detection
    X- and Gamma Rays
    Attenuation and Absorption of Electromagnetic Radiation
    Radiation Detection Using Compound Semiconductors

    Present Detection Systems

    Compound Semiconductors and Radiation Detection
    Group IV and IV-IV Materials
    Group III-V Materials
    Group II-VI Materials
    Group III-VI Materials
    Group n-VII Materials
    Ternary Compounds
    Other Inorganic Compounds
    Organic Compounds
    Discussion
    Neutron Detection

    Improving Performance
    Single Carrier Collection and Correction Techniques
    Electrode Design and the Near-Field Effect
    Discussion and Conclusions
    The Future

    Appendices A-F

    All chapters include references.

    Biography

    Dr. Alan Owens has an undergraduate degree in Physics and Physical Electronics and a Doctorate from the University of Durham, United Kingdom, in Astrophysics. He spent 30 years in the design and construction of novel detection systems for X- and gamma-ray astronomy and is currently a staff physicist at the European Space Agency, involved in the development and exploitation of new technologies for space applications. Much of this work revolves around compound semiconductors for radiation detection and measurement, which by its very nature involves materials and systems at a low level of maturity. Consequently, he has been involved in all aspects of a systematic and long-term program on material assessment, production, processing, detector fabrication, and characterization for a large number of compound semiconductors.

    "The book provides an invaluable source of knowledge to graduate students and researchers of detector technology, radiation physics and measurements. Moreover, advance and senior researchers can also benefit from it."
    —M. Jamil, Contemporary Physics, 2013