Active Quenching and Reset Circuit for Geiger Mode Avalanche Photodiodes

Abstract

Avalanche photodiodes working in Geiger mode can realize single photon detection and play important roles in fields of quantum communication, imaging and Lidar system, et al. To keep the device intact and detect the photon signals in time, quenching and reset circuit is a necessary module. In this paper, an active quenching and reset circuit is designed. The circuit achieves voltage feedback by combining analog and digital modules to quench and reset APD, which effectively reduces the dead time. Experimental results show that the dead time of the active circuit is reduced by more than ten times compared with the passive circuit. The circuit is beneficial to improve the detection efficiency and design better detection system.