CIS221-X is a prototype monolithic complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor, optimized for soft X-ray astronomy and developed for the proposed European Space Agency Transient High Energy Sky and Early Universe Surveyor (THESEUS) mission. One significant advantage of CMOS technology is its resistance to radiation damage. To assess this resistance, three backside-illuminated CIS221-X detectors have been irradiated with 10 MeV protons using the MC40 Cyclotron Facility at the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom. Each detector received 1/2, 1, and 2 THESEUS end-of-life proton fluences (6.65×108 p+/cm2). One had already been exposed to ionizing radiation [up to 59.04 krad total ionizing dose (TID)] during a previous radiation campaign. Using unirradiated readout electronics, the electro-optical performance of each device has been measured before and after proton irradiation. No significant change was observed in the readout noise and image lag. An increase in mean dark current was recorded, as was an increase in the number of hot pixels. The degradation of CIS221-X performance due to non-ionizing radiation effects is similar to that of comparable CMOS image sensors and has been attributed to an increase in the number of bulk silicon defects.
CIS221-X is a prototype monolithic CMOS image sensor, optimised for soft x-ray astronomy and developed for the proposed European Space Agency THESEUS mission. One significant advantage of CMOS technology is its resistance to radiation damage. To assess this resistance, three backside-illuminated CIS221-X detectors have been irradiated with 10MeV protons using the MC40 cyclotron facility at the University of Birmingham, UK. Each detector received ½, 1 and 2 THESEUS end-of-life proton fluences (6.65 × 108 p+/cm2). One had already been exposed to ionising radiation (up to 59.04krad TID) during a previous radiation campaign. Using unirradiated readout electronics, the electro-optical performance of each device has been measured before and after proton irradiation. No significant change was observed in the readout noise and image lag. An increase in mean dark current was recorded, as was an increase in the number of hot pixels. The degradation of CIS221-X performance due to non-ionising radiation effects is similar to that of comparable CMOS image sensors.
CIS221-X is a prototype complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor, optimized for soft x-ray astronomy and developed for the proposed ESA Transient High Energy Sky and Early Universe Surveyor (THESEUS) mission. The sensor features 40 μm pitch square pixels built on a 35 μm thick, high-resistivity epitaxial silicon that is fully depleted by reverse substrate bias. Backside illumination processing has been used to achieve high x-ray quantum efficiency, and an optical light-blocking filter has been applied to mitigate the influence of stray light. A comprehensive electro-optical characterization of CIS221-X has been completed. The median readout noise is 3.3 e − RMS with 90% of pixels reporting a value <3.6 e − RMS. At −40 ° C, the dark current is 12.4 ± 0.06 e − / pixel / s. The pixel photo-response is linear to within 1% for 0.3 to 5 keV photons (82 to 1370 e − ) with <0.1 % image lag. Following per-pixel gain correction, an energy resolution of 130.2 ± 0.4 eV has been measured at 5898 eV. In the 0.3 to 1.8 keV energy range, CIS221-X achieves >80 % quantum efficiency. With the exception of dark current, these results either meet or outperform the requirements for the THESEUS mission, strongly supporting the consideration of CMOS technology for soft x-ray astronomy.
CIS221-X is the first in a new generation of monolithic CMOS image sensors optimized for soft x-ray applications. The pixels are built on 35 μm thick, high-resistivity epitaxial silicon and feature Deep Depletion Extension (DDE) implants, facilitating over depletion by reverse substrate bias. When cooled to -40 °C, CIS221-X reports a readout noise of 3.3 e- RMS and 12.4 ± 0.06 e-/pixel/s of dark current. The 40μm pixels experience near-zero image lag. Following per-pixel gain correction, an energy resolution of 130 ± 0.4 eV FWHM has been measured at 5.9 keV. In the 0.3 – 1.8 keV energy range, the sensor achieves a quantum efficiency of above 80%. Radiation tests have shown that both the readout noise and dark current increase with total ionising dose and that the OBF can help to mitigate the increase in dark current. The measured electro-optical parameters and the preliminary ionising radiation results strongly support the use of the CIS221-X in soft x-ray applications.
A monolithic CMOS image sensor based on the pinned photodiode (PPD) and optimized for X-ray imaging in the 300 eV to 5 keV energy range is described. Featuring 40 μm square pixels and 40 μm thick, high resistivity epitaxial silicon, the sensor is fully depleted by reverse substrate bias. Backside illumination (BSI) processing has been used to achieve high X-ray QE, and a dedicated pixel design has been developed for low image lag and high conversion gain. The sensor, called CIS221-X, is manufactured in a 180 nm CMOS process and has three different 512×128-pixel arrays on 40 μm pitch, as well as a 2048×512 array of 10 μm pixels. CIS221-X also features per-column 12-bit ADCs, digital readout via four highspeed LVDS outputs, and can be read out at 45 frames per second. CIS221-X achieves readout noise of 2.6 e- RMS and full width at half maximum (FWHM) at the Mn-Kα 5.9 keV characteristic X-ray line of 153 eV at -40 °C. This paper presents the characterization results of the first backside illuminated CIS221-X, including X-ray response and readout noise. The newly developed sensor and the technology underpinning it is intended for diverse applications, including Xray astronomy, synchrotron, and X-ray free electron laser light sources.
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