Summary
This experimental study employed synchrotron X-ray micro-imaging at Diamond Light Source to directly visualise electric field behaviour in high-bulk-resistivity silicon diodes designed for CERN's ATLAS Inner Tracker upgrade. The work directly validated simulation predictions that electric field penetration extends towards sensor edges in high-resistivity silicon, providing empirical evidence to inform manufacturing and operational strategies for next-generation particle physics detectors in high-radiation environments.
UK applicability
This fundamental physics instrumentation research was conducted at a United Kingdom national facility (Diamond Light Source) and has direct applicability to UK-based particle physics research and detector development. The findings support optimisation of silicon sensor designs for international large-scale physics experiments hosted partly at CERN.
Key measures
Electric field spatial distribution and field penetration towards sensor edges as a function of applied bias voltage (up to −500 V) in silicon diodes
Outcomes reported
The study mapped electric field distributions inside biased silicon diodes fabricated from high-bulk-resistivity prototype wafers using synchrotron X-ray micro-imaging. The research characterised how electric field behaviour varies with applied bias voltage to assess the risk of increased surface leakage currents at sensor edges.
Topic tags
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