S. Terzo

Thin n-in-p pixel sensors and the SLID-ICV vertical integration technology for the ATLAS upgrade at the HL-LHC

Abstract This R&D activity is focused on the development of new modules for the upgrade of the ATLAS pixel system at the High Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC). The performance after irradiation of n-in-p pixel sensors of different active thicknesses is studied, together with an investigation of a novel interconnection technique offered by the Fraunhofer Institute EMFT in Munich, the Solid–Liquid-InterDiffusion (SLID), which is an alternative to the standard solder bump-bonding. The pixel modules are based on thin n-in-p sensors, with an active thickness of 75 μ m or 150 μ m , produced at the MPI Semiconductor Laboratory (MPI HLL) and on 100 μ m thick sensors with active edges, fabricated at VTT, Finland. Hit efficiencies are derived from beam test data for thin devices irradiated up to a fluence of 4 × 10 15 n eq / cm 2 . For the active edge devices, the charge collection properties of the edge pixels before irradiation are discussed in detail, with respect to the inner ones, using measurements with radioactive sources. Beyond the active edge sensors, an additional ingredient needed to design four side buttable modules is the possibility of moving the wire bonding area from the chip surface facing the sensor to the backside, avoiding the implementation of the cantilever extruding beyond the sensor area. The feasibility of this process is under investigation with the FE-I3 SLID modules, where Inter Chip Vias are etched, employing an EMFT technology, with a cross section of 3 μ m × 10 μ m , at the positions of the original wire bonding pads.

3D silicon pixel detectors for the High-Luminosity LHC

3D silicon pixel detectors have been investigated as radiation-hard candidates for the innermost layers of the HL-LHC upgrade of the ATLAS pixel detector. 3D detectors are already in use today in the ATLAS IBL and AFP experiments. These are based on 50 × 250 μm2 large pixels connected to the FE-I4 readout chip. Detectors of this generation were irradiated to HL-LHC fluences and demonstrated excellent radiation hardness with operational voltages as low as 180 V and power dissipation of 12–15 mW/cm2 at a fluence of about 1016 neq/cm2, measured at -25°C. Moreover, to cope with the higher occupancies expected at the HL-LHC, a first run of a new generation of 3D detectors designed for the HL-LHC was produced at CNM with small pixel sizes of 50 × 50 and 25 × 100 μm2, matched to the FE-I4 chip. They demonstrated a good performance in the laboratory and in beam tests with hit efficiencies of about 97% at already 1–2 V before irradiation.

Heavily irradiated N-in-p thin planar pixel sensors with and without active edges

We present the results of the characterization of silicon pixel modules employing n-in-p planar sensors with an active thickness of 150 μm, produced at MPP/HLL, and 100–200 μm thin active edge sensor devices, produced at VTT in Finland. These thin sensors are designed as candidates for the ATLAS pixel detector upgrade to be operated at the HL-LHC, as they ensure radiation hardness at high fluences. They are interconnected to the ATLAS FE-I3 and FE-I4 read-out chips. Moreover, the n-in-p technology only requires a single side processing and thereby it is a cost-effective alternative to the n-in-n pixel technology presently employed in the LHC experiments. High precision beam test measurements of the hit efficiency have been performed on these devices both at the CERN SpS and at DESY, Hamburg. We studied the behavior of these sensors at different bias voltages and different beam incident angles up to the maximum one expected for the new Insertable B-Layer of ATLAS and for HL-LHC detectors. Results obtained with 150 μm thin sensors, assembled with the new ATLAS FE-I4 chip and irradiated up to a fluence of 4 × 1015 neq/cm2, show that they are excellent candidates for larger radii of the silicon pixel tracker in the upgrade of the ATLAS detector at HL-LHC. In addition, the active edge technology of the VTT devices maximizes the active area of the sensor and reduces the material budget to suit the requirements for the innermost layers. The edge pixel performance of VTT modules has been investigated at beam test experiments and the analysis after irradiation up to a fluence of 5 × 1015 neq/cm2 has been performed using radioactive sources in the laboratory.

Development of n-in-p pixel modules for the ATLAS Upgrade at HL-LHC

Thin planar pixel modules are promising candidates to instrument the inner layers of the new ATLAS pixel detector for HLLHC, thanks to the reduced contribution to the material budget and their high charge collection e ciency after irradiation. 100-200 m thick sensors, interconnected to FE-I4 read-out chips, have been characterized with radioactive sources and beam tests at the CERN-SPS and DESY. The results of these measurements are reported for devices before and after irradiation up to a fluence of 14 10 15 neq=cm 2 . The charge collection and tracking e ciency of the di erent sensor thicknesses are compared. The outlook for future planar pixel sensor production is discussed, with a focus on sensor design with the pixel pitches (50x50 and 25x100 m 2 ) foreseen for the RD53 Collaboration read-out chip in 65 nm CMOS technology. An optimization of the biasing structures in the pixel cells is required to avoid the hit e ciency loss presently observed in the punch-through region after irradiation. For this purpose the performance of di erent layouts have been compared in FE-I4 compatible sensors at various fluence levels by using beam test data. Highly segmented sensors will represent a challenge for the tracking in the forward region of the pixel system at HL-LHC. In order to reproduce the performance of 50x50 m 2 pixels at high pseudo-rapidity values, FE-I4 compatible planar pixel sensors have been studied before and after irradiation in beam tests at high incidence angle (80 ) with respect to the short pixel direction. Results on cluster shapes, charge collection and hit e ciency will be shown.

Thin n-in-p planar pixel sensors and active edge sensors for the ATLAS upgrade at HL-LHC

Silicon pixel modules employing n-in-p planar sensors with an active thickness of 200 μm, produced at CiS, and 100-200 μm thin active/slim edge sensor devices, produced at VTT in Finland have been interconnected to ATLAS FE-I3 and FE-I4 read-out chips. The thin sensors are designed for high energy physics collider experiments to ensure radiation hardness at high fluences. Moreover, the active edge technology of the VTT production maximizes the sensitive region of the assembly, allowing for a reduced overlap of the modules in the pixel layer close to the beam pipe. The CiS production includes also four chip sensors according to the module geometry planned for the outer layers of the upgraded ATLAS pixel detector to be operated at the HL-LHC. The modules have been characterized using radioactive sources in the laboratory and with high precision measurements at beam tests to investigate the hit efficiency and charge collection properties at different bias voltages and particle incidence angles. The performance of the different sensor thicknesses and edge designs are compared before and after irradiation up to a fluence of 1.4 × 1016 neq/cm2.

3D sensors for the HL-LHC

In order to increase its discovery potential, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) accelerator will be upgraded in the next decade. The high luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) period demands new sensor technologies to cope with increasing radiation fluences and particle rates. The ATLAS experiment will replace the entire inner tracking detector with a completely new silicon-only system. 3D pixel sensors are promising candidates for the innermost layers of the Pixel detector due to their excellent radiation hardness at low operation voltages and low power dissipation at moderate temperatures. Recent developments of 3D sensors for the HL-LHC are presented.

Studies of irradiated AMS H35 CMOS detectors for the ATLAS tracker upgrade

Silicon detectors based on the HV-CMOS technology are being investigated as possible candidate for the outer layers of the ATLAS pixel detector for the High Luminosity LHC. In this framework the H35Demo ASIC has been produced in the 350 nm AMS technology (H35). The H35Demo chip has a large area (18.49 × 24.40 mm2) and includes four different pixel matrices and three test structures. In this paper the radiation hardness properties, in particular the evolution of the depletion region with fluence is studied using edge-TCT on test structures. Measurements on the test structures from chips with different substrate resistivity are shown for non irradiated and irradiated devices up to a cumulative fluence of 2 ⋅ 1015 1 MeV neq / cm2.

arXiv : Radiation hardness of small-pitch 3D pixel sensors up to HL-LHC fluences

A new generation of 3D silicon pixel detectors with a small pixel size of 50 \(\times \) 50 and 25 \(\times \) 100 \(\upmu \)m\(^{2}\) is being developed for the HL-LHC tracker upgrades. The radiation hardness of such detectors was studied in beam tests after irradiation to HL-LHC fluences up to \(1.4\times 10^{16}\) n\(_{\mathrm {eq}}\)/cm\(^2\). At this fluence, an operation voltage of only 100 V is needed to achieve 97% hit efficiency, with a power dissipation of 13 mW/cm\(^2\) at \(-25\,^{\circ }\)C, considerably lower than for previous 3D sensor generations and planar sensors.

Characterisation of novel prototypes of monolithic HV-CMOS pixel detectors for high energy physics experiments

An upgrade of the ATLAS experiment for the High Luminosity phase of LHC is planned for 2024 and foresees the replacement of the present Inner Detector (ID) with a new Inner Tracker (ITk) completely made of silicon devices. Depleted active pixel sensors built with the High Voltage CMOS (HV-CMOS) technology are investigated as an option to cover large areas in the outermost layers of the pixel detector and are especially interesting for the development of monolithic devices which will reduce the production costs and the material budget with respect to the present hybrid assemblies. For this purpose the H35DEMO, a large area HV-CMOS demonstrator chip, was designed by KIT, IFAE and University of Liverpool, and produced in AMS 350 nm CMOS technology. It consists of four pixel matrices and additional test structures. Two of the matrices include amplifiers and discriminator stages and are thus designed to be operated as monolithic detectors. In these devices the signal is mainly produced by charge drift in a small depleted volume obtained by applying a bias voltage of the order of 100V. Moreover, to enhance the radiation hardness of the chip, this technology allows to enclose the electronics in the same deep N-WELLs which are also used as collecting electrodes. In this contribution the characterisation of H35DEMO chips and results of the very first beam test measurements of the monolithic CMOS matrices with high energetic pions at CERN SPS will be presented.

Production and characterisation of SLID interconnected n-in-p pixel modules with 75 μm thin silicon sensors

The performance of pixel modules built from 75 micrometer thin silicon sensors and ATLAS read-out chips employing the Solid Liquid InterDiffusion (SLID) interconnection technology is presented. This technology, developed by the Fraunhofer EMFT, is a possible alternative to the standard bump-bonding. It allows for stacking of different interconnected chip and sensor layers without destroying the already formed bonds. In combination with Inter-Chip-Vias (ICVs) this paves the way for vertical integration. Both technologies are combined in a pixel module concept which is the basis for the modules discussed in this paper. Mechanical and electrical parameters of pixel modules employing both SLID interconnections and sensors of 75 micrometer thickness are covered. The mechanical features discussed include the interconnection efficiency, alignment precision and mechanical strength. The electrical properties comprise the leakage currents, tuning characteristics, charge collection, cluster sizes and hit efficiencies. Targeting at a usage at the high luminosity upgrade of the LHC accelerator called HL-LHC, the results were obtained before and after irradiation up to fluences of 1016 neq/cm.