Peltier-cooled and actively quenched operation of InGaAs/InP avalanche photodiodes as photon counters at a 1.55-μm wavelength

摘要

The performance of commercially available InGaAs/InP avalanche photodiodes as single-photon detectors at a 1.55-μm wavelength has been investigated. A new active quenching and gating circuit, tailored for operation of these diodes at temperatures in the range from room temperature to -60℃ and achievable by means of thermoelectrical cooling, has been developed. Careful tuning of the diodes' operating conditions resulted in a significant reduction of afterpulsing effects; it permitted operation of the detectors with high repetition rates. A noise-equivalent power of 7×10~(-16) W/Hz~(1/2) was obtained at a 1.55-μm wavelength.