Recently, the research group of Zhu Xiangping, an associate researcher of the State Key Laboratory of Transient Optics and Photonic Technology of Xi’an Institute of Optics and Mechanics, and Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory have successfully developed a new generation of high-performance Microchannel Plate (MCP). The microchannel plate uses multi-component lead-free glass as the substrate material, and uses Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) to prepare the functional layer. Compared with traditional commercial lead-containing MCP, the process does not require hydrogen reduction and successfully reduces the cost of The noise caused by gas adsorption and K40 isotope β decay due to the lead reduction layer in traditional MCP.
The new generation of high-performance MCP substrates can withstand higher baking temperatures, greatly reducing the outgassing of MCP devices and extending the service life of the devices. In addition, the new generation of high-performance MCP technology can independently and finely control the bulk resistance, which can meet the application requirements of different scenarios such as picosecond time-of-flight measurement. The gain of the ALD-MCP sample developed by the joint team is better than 5×104 (@1000V), and the bulk resistance can be finely adjusted in the range of 20-200MΩ.
Microchannel plate is an electron multiplying device with multi-channel continuous dynode structure developed on the basis of single-channel electron multiplier. The core device in detection and image enhancement / weak light signal amplification.
The joint team used ALD technology to deposit conductive layer and secondary electron emission layer functional materials on the inner wall of the microchannel, realizing the separation of structural materials and functional materials, avoiding the contradiction between materials and properties in the traditional lead-glass hydrogen reduction process. It can be extended to borosilicate glass materials, polymer materials and ceramic materials.
The technology adopts microelectronic process, high process repeatability, stable and reliable product performance, and can deposit materials with higher secondary electron emission coefficients, does not contain RoHS restricted substances, has low noise, high gain, long life, and can achieve larger area arrays The unique advantages of detection devices, etc.
NASA astrophysicist Anton Tremsin believes that ALD technology brings new developments in high-performance MCPs and photodetectors with large area, high reliability, low cost, high gain and low noise, which will open up many new applications, including cost-effective Particle detectors for positron emission tomography (PET) medical imaging cameras, security inspection, high-energy particles, astrophysics, nuclear physics, etc.
In addition, it has broad application prospects in the fields of lidar, low-light night vision image intensifier, SEM and other analytical instruments, as well as time-resolved fluorescence/Raman spectrometers, gated gated laser 3D imaging, etc.
The joint team has done a lot of research work in the fields of MCP substrate material design and preparation process, ALD deposition film material and preparation process, single-photon sensitive detection device, ultra-high vacuum detection device packaging and other fields, and has rich experience in optoelectronic device research and development.
The research work has been supported by the key research and development plan of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Ministry of Science and Technology “development of high-quality special optoelectronic functional glass and products” project sub-project “optical fiber products and key industrialization technology”, the Chinese Academy of Sciences scientific research instrument and equipment development core key technology research project and Songshan Lake material experiment support for special projects.
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