Collaborative Research: Impact Ionization Engineered and Nanoscale Quantum-dot Based Avalanche Photodiodes for Reliable Near- to Long-wave Infrared Photon Counting

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Collaborative Research: Impact Ionization Engineered and NanoscaleQuantum-dot Based Avalanche Photodiodes for Reliable Near- toLong-wave Infrared Photon CountingM. M. Hayat and S. Krishna, University of New Mexico0601645J. C. Campbell, University of Virginia0601927Intellectual Merit: Presently, there is a great need for high-efficiency single-photon detectors for the low-dispersion, low-loss 1.3-1.55 micron near-infrared (NIR) spectral window. This need is warranted by applications in fiber-optic quantum communication, long-range eye-safe flash imaging ladar, and deep-space communication. Moreover, photon-counting detectors for the long-wave infrared (LWIR) regime would be very useful in detecting ultralow levels of irradiance and reflectance, as in astronomical photometry (high-speed photometry of astronomical objects), high-speed astrophysics and chemical sensing. While photomultiplier tubes and single-photon avalanche diodes have been successfully developed for wavelengths below 1.1 micron, there are no acceptable photon-counting detectors for 1.3-1.55 micron NIR operation. The goal of this collaborative theoretical and experimental program is to develop single-photon avalanche diodes for high-accuracy photon counting in two spectral regimes: (1) the 1.3-1.55 micron NIR regime, and (2) the 8-12 micron LWIR regime. The proposed InGaAs-based SPAD technology for NIR operation features optimized AlInAs-InP and AlInGaAs-GaAs impact-ionization-engineered multiplication regions, which have already been demonstrated to offer record-low excess noise factors for avalanche photodiodes operating at 1.55 micron. On the other hand, the proposed technology for LWIR operation is based on a seamless integration of GaAs-based quantum-dot technology, as an absorber, with a GaAs multiplication region. Broader Impacts: The proposed optimized single-photon avalanche diodes are expected to bring the performance of 1.3-1.55 micron photon-counting systems to a level comparable to that of visible-light photon counters, which would greatly impact the aforementioned applications. The proposed effort would also have a dramatic impact on LWIR infrared sensor research and technology. Two graduate students and one high school student (over the summer) will be supported in this project. Every effort will be made to recruit from underrepresented groups in engineering. A two-day symposium will be organized each year at the University of New Mexico; all students doing research in this program will present their work in technical and open-public sessions. During the symposia, a free short course in optical communication will also be offered to interested high-school science teachers. Additionally, a series of supervised, hands-on and intriguing demonstrations of single-photon detection will be provided to children at Explora, Albuquerque's science museum.