PhotonPix: Single-Photon Detector with 10 ps timing precision and high dynamic range

Abstract

A plug-and-play PhotonPix single-photon detector with a logical signal output is developed for applications requiring ultimate timing precision down to 10 ps over a wide dynamic photon flux range. The heart of the detector is an Exosens Fast Timing Microchannel Plate Photomultiplier (FT MCP-PMT) with a large 8 mm diameter sensitive area, which can accommodate various Hi-QE photocathodes optimized for high quantum efficiency (QE) and low dark rates. The detector dead time, timing accuracy, and counting efficiency of the PhotonPix are measured and analyzed over a wide dynamic photon flux range up to about 1 GHz in burst mode and up to 100~MHz in continuous operation mode.