PHOTON DETECTION WITH HIGH-GAIN AVALANCHE PHOTODIODE ARRAYS

The detection of light emitted in fast scintillating fibers and Cerenk ov radiators used for fiber calorimetry and tracking applications in h igh energy colliders, requires fast detector arrays with high sensitiv ity to short wavelength photons. Photomultiplier tubes, the traditiona l imaging detectors for short wavelength optical radiation, have limit ed spatial resolution and require expensive anti-magnetic shielding. W e report on short wavelength sensitivity improvement and detection eff iciency performance for a novel p-n junction planar structure silicon avalanche photodiode (APD) array, operated in Geiger mode. The APD arr ay provides a high sensitivity detector for applications requiring the detection of light spatial distributions with single photon sensitivi ty.