I. Ivanov’s research while affiliated with Technical University of Sofia and other places

The performance of n- and p-type silicon detectors manufactured by a recently developed planar technology for the detection of β-particles, conversion electrons and γ-rays is reported. Two structures are tested: an ion implanted detector with p+-n-n+ structure and a diffusion detector with n+-p-p+ structure.The experiments show that planar detectors can be used for high energy electron counting, for γ-ray detection and for identification of low energy β-sources.The phenomenon of total absorption of high energy conversion electrons in thin silicon detectors is observed and explained. It is demonstrated that the peaks of total absorption can be used for the estimation of the thickness of the depleted region of the detector.

Two types of detectors were developed by conventional planar technology: a p⁺-n-n⁺ ion-implanted detector and a n⁺p-p⁺ diffused detector. There was no observable difference in the quality of the detectors manufactured in this way. Both detectors were investigated for alpha and beta spectroscopy and exhibited good energy resolution. With an additional deposition of a ⁶LiF converter layer the detectors can be used for detection of neutrons

The note demonstrates the potential capabilities for X-ray analysis by avalanche detectors with relatively thick drift regions. The experiments showed that Si AD can be used in X-ray analysis of the K lines of all elements from the first half of the Periodic Table and of the L and M lines of almost all elements. The standard planar technology used for detector manufacturing can reduce their price.