3D Single Photon Counting Modules for Radiation Instrumentation and Medical Imaging

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Optoelectronics systems have become the ubiquitous backbone of a multitude of applications, from smartphones and tablets to medical imaging instruments and telecommunication systems. They are in constant evolution, with performance improvement targets such as increasing the number of pixels, photodetection efficiency and timing measurement accuracy. Continuing impetus for growth is also provided by the integration of smart microsystems capable of total or partial signal processing from photodetectors. In that line of thought, optoelectronics microsystems integration and signal processing capability are starting to take advantage of the technological breakthroughs required to enable the "more than Moore's law" in the field of microelectronics. One of those technological milestones is 3D vertical integration, where a minimum of 2 integrated circuits are stacked and interconnected using Through Silicon Vias (TSV). This proposal is about the realisation of 3D Single Photon Counting Modules, where an array of photodetectors is integrated on top of the required front-end microelectronic circuits. The targeted optoelectronics microsystem features single photon detection capability with single photon resolution, the ability to timestamp the arrival of the photons with very high accuracy and advanced digital signal processing. The challenging objective is to achieve a timing resolution in the range of 100 fs to 10 ps. For this, novel photodetector arrays and readout integrated circuits in deep-submicron CMOS technologies are required and are the core of the short term objectives of this research program. This work will lead to the next generation of detection modules that will be used in Positron Emission Tomography scanner, the main tool used in cancer imaging and diagnosis, with unprecedented time-of-flight coincidence timing resolution and leading to considerable improvement in the image contrast. This has a direct impact on the reduction of the radiotracer radiation dose injected to the patient, on scan time (and consequently patient throughput) and new diagnostic opportunities. The impact of this program also extends beyond PET detectors, since many scientific apparatus and industrial instrumentations will benefit from single photon sensitivity and precise timing measurements, such as Diffuse Optical Tomography, fluorescence imaging, 3D imaging and in apparatus using Light Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) systems. The originality and innovation of the resulting 3D Single Photon Counting Modules represents a timely opportunity for Canada to participate in a high-impact international collaboration with CERN.