title: High-Resolution High-Count-Rate X-ray Spectroscopy with State-of-the-Art Silicon Detectors.
abstract: For the European X-ray multi-mirror (XMM) satellite mission and the German X-ray satellite ABRIXAS, fully depleted pn-CCDs have been fabricated, enabling high-speed low-noise position-resolving X-ray spectroscopy. The detector was designed and fabricated with a homogeneously sensitive area of 36 cm(2). At 150 K it has a noise of 4 e(-) r.m.s., with a readout time of the total focal plane array of 4 ms. The maximum count rate for single-photon counting was 10(5) counts s(-1) under flat-field conditions. In the integration mode more than 10(9) counts s(-1) can be detected at 6 keV. Its position resolution is of the order of 100 micro m. The quantum efficiency is higher than 90% from carbon K X-rays (277 eV) up to 10 keV. New cylindrical silicon drift detectors have been designed, fabricated and tested. They comprise an integrated on-chip amplifier system with continuous reset, on-chip voltage divider, electron accumulation layer stabilizer, large area, homogeneous radiation entrance window and a drain for surface-generated leakage current. At count rates as high as 2 x 10(6) counts cm(-2) s(-1), they still show excellent spectroscopic behaviour at room-temperature operation in single-photon detection mode. The energy resolution at room temperature is 220 eV at 6 keV X-ray energy and 140 eV at 253 K, being achieved with Peltier coolers. These systems were operated at synchrotron light sources (ESRF, HASYLAB and NLS) as X-ray fluorescence spectrometers in scanning electron microscopes and as ultra low noise photodiodes. The operation of a multi-channel silicon drift detector system is already foreseen at synchrotron light sources for X-ray holography experiments. All systems are fabricated in planar technology having the detector and amplifiers monolithically integrated on high-resistivity silicon.
authors.affiliation: MPI für Extraterrestrische Physik, Halbleiterlabor, Paul-Gerhardt-Allee 42, D-81245 München, Germany.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Strüder
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fiorini
authors.forename: E
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authors.lastname: Gatti
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hartmann
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Holl
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authors.lastname: Krause
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authors.lastname: Lechner
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authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Longoni
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lutz
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kemmer
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Meidinger
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Popp
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Soltau
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Weber
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Von Zanthier