Radiation damage in InGaAs photodiodes by 1 MeV fast neutrons

Irradiation damage in In0.53Ga0.47As p-i-n photodiodes by 1 MeV fast neutro ns has been studied as a function of fluence for the first time, and the re sults are discussed in this paper. The degradation of the electrical and op tical performance of diodes increases with increasing fluence. The induced lattice defects in the In0.53Ga0.47As epitaxial layers and the InP substrat e are studied by Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS) methods. In the I n0.53Ga0.47As epitaxial layers, hole and electron capture levels are induce d by irradiation. The influence of the type of radiation source on the devi ce degradation is then discussed by comparison to I MeV electrons with resp ect to the numbers of knock-on atoms and the nonionizing energy loss (NIEL) . The radiation source dependence of performance degradation is attributed to the difference of mass between the two irradiating particles and the pro bability of nuclear collision for the formation of lattice defects. (C) 199 8 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. Ail rights reserved.