Performance of CdZnTe detectors passivated with energetic oxygen atoms

Noise caused by surface-leakage current can degrade the performance of CdZn Te spectrometers, particularly devices with closely spaced contacts such as coplanar grid detectors. In order to reduce surface leakage, we are treati ng CdZnTe detector surfaces with energetic, neutral oxygen atoms. Energetic oxygen atoms react with the surface to form a resistive oxide layer. Becau se the reaction is effective at room temperature, deleterious heating of th e substrate is avoided. In most cases, leakage current and noise are shown to decrease significantly after treatment. The effect of the treatment on t he performance of coplanar grid detectors is presented. (C) 1999 Elsevier S cience B.V. All rights reserved.