A CMOS SPAD Line Sensor With Per-Pixel Histogramming TDC for Time-Resolved Multispectral Imaging

Erdogan, A.T.; Walker, Richard; Finlayson, N.; Krstajić, Nikola; Williams, G.; Girkin, John M.; Henderson, Robert K.

doi:10.1109/jssc.2019.2894355

Cited by 60 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Although in this paper we focused on SPAD detectors for LiDAR applications, same or similar architectures can be employed also for many other applications exploiting TCSPC to reconstruct very fast and faint optical waveforms, such as FLIM and spectroscopy [ 77 , 78 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SPADs and SiPMs Arrays for Long-Range High-Speed Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)

Villa

Severini

Madonini

et al. 2021

Sensors

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Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) is a 3D imaging technique, widely used in many applications such as augmented reality, automotive, machine vision, spacecraft navigation and landing. Achieving long-ranges and high-speed, most of all in outdoor applications with strong solar background illumination, are challenging requirements. In the introduction we review different 3D-ranging techniques (stereo-vision, projection with structured light, pulsed-LiDAR, amplitude-modulated continuous-wave LiDAR, frequency-modulated continuous-wave interferometry), illumination schemes (single point and blade scanning, flash-LiDAR) and time-resolved detectors for LiDAR (EM-CCD, I-CCD, APD, SPAD, SiPM). Then, we provide an extensive review of silicon- single photon avalanche diode (SPAD)-based LiDAR detectors (both commercial products and research prototypes) analyzing how each architecture faces the main challenges of LiDAR (i.e., long ranges, centimeter resolution, large field-of-view and high angular resolution, high operation speed, background immunity, eye-safety and multi-camera operation). Recent progresses in 3D stacking technologies provided an important step forward in SPAD array development, allowing to reach smaller pitch, higher pixel count and more complex processing electronics. In the conclusions, we provide some guidelines for the design of next generation SPAD-LiDAR detectors.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SPADs and SiPMs Arrays for Long-Range High-Speed Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)

Villa

Severini

Madonini

et al. 2021

Sensors

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“…The line sensor designed for time-resolved multispectral imaging in [ 75 ] can operate in SPC mode (102.1 giga-events/s), TCSPC mode (192.4 million-events/s), and on-chip histogramming mode (16.5 giga-events/s). Fabricated in a 130 nm CMOS imaging process, it includes two SPAD line arrays, one (49.31% FF) optimized for detection in the blue-green (450–550 nm) spectral region and the other (15.75%) optimized for the red-near-infrared (600–900 nm) wavelengths.…”

Section: Review Of Spad Arrays For Raman Spectroscopymentioning

confidence: 99%

Single Photon Avalanche Diode Arrays for Time-Resolved Raman Spectroscopy

Madonini

Villa

2021

Sensors

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The detection of peaks shifts in Raman spectroscopy enables a fingerprint reconstruction to discriminate among molecules with neither labelling nor sample preparation. Time-resolved Raman spectroscopy is an effective technique to reject the strong fluorescence background that profits from the time scale difference in the two responses: Raman photons are scattered almost instantaneously while fluorescence shows a nanoseconds time constant decay. The combination of short laser pulses with time-gated detectors enables the collection of only those photons synchronous with the pulse, thus rejecting fluorescent ones. This review addresses time-gating issues from the sensor standpoint and identifies single photon avalanche diode (SPAD) arrays as the most suitable single-photon detectors to be rapidly and precisely time-gated without bulky, complex, or expensive setups. At first, we discuss the requirements for ideal Raman SPAD arrays, particularly focusing on the design guidelines for optimized on-chip processing electronics. Then we present some existing SPAD-based architectures, featuring specific operation modes which can be usefully exploited for Raman spectroscopy. Finally, we highlight key aspects for future ultrafast Raman platforms and highly integrated sensors capable of undistorted identification of Raman peaks across many pixels.

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“…11, the first step is an encoder to convert the TDC thermometric output code in one-hot code, followed by a bank of 8-to-1 multiplexers, used to select the range of the one-hot outputs corresponding to the dithering position to correctly implement the dithering. The conversion results are accumulated in 128 12-bit counters to build the histogram, similar to what is presented in [30] and [35]. An additional 24-bit counter is used to count the total number of events detected by the gated SiPM and the data are readout serially via the SPI interface.…”

Section: B Time-to-digital Converter and Histogram Buildermentioning

confidence: 99%

Large-Area, Fast-Gated Digital SiPM With Integrated TDC for Portable and Wearable Time-Domain NIRS

Conca

Sesta

Buttafava

et al. 2020

IEEE J. Solid-State Circuits

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We present the design and characterization of a large-area, fast-gated, all-digital single-photon detector with programmable active area, internal gate generator, and time-todigital converter (TDC) with a built-in histogram builder circuit, suitable for performing high-sensitivity time-domain nearinfrared spectroscopy (TD-NIRS) measurements when coupled with pulsed laser sources. We used a novel low-power differential sensing technique that optimizes area occupation. The photodetector is a time-gated digital silicon photomultiplier (dSiPM) with an 8.6-mm 2 photosensitive area, 37% fill-factor, and ∼300 ps (20%-80%) gate rising edge, based on low-noise single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) and fabricated in 0.35-µm CMOS technology. The built-in TDC with a histogram builder has a least-significant-bit (LSB) of 78 ps and 128 time-bins, and the integrated circuit can be interfaced directly with a low-cost microcontroller with a serial interface for programming and readout. Experimental characterization demonstrated a temporal response as good as 300-ps full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) and a dynamic range >100 dB (thanks to the programmable active area size). This microelectronic detector paves the way for a miniaturized, stand-alone, multi-wavelength TD-NIRS system with an unprecedented level of integration and responsivity, suitable for portable and wearable systems. Index Terms-Digital silicon photomultiplier (dSiPM), fastgated single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) array, photon counting, time-to-digital converter (TDC), time-domain near-infrared spectroscopy (TD-NIRS). I. INTRODUCTION T IME-DOMAIN near-infrared spectroscopy (TD-NIRS) is a powerful technique for obtaining non-invasive, in vivo measurements of tissue constituents and structure [1]. This can be exploited in many scientific fields, from a clinical Manuscript

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A CMOS SPAD Line Sensor With Per-Pixel Histogramming TDC for Time-Resolved Multispectral Imaging

Cited by 60 publications

References 39 publications

SPADs and SiPMs Arrays for Long-Range High-Speed Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)

SPADs and SiPMs Arrays for Long-Range High-Speed Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)

Single Photon Avalanche Diode Arrays for Time-Resolved Raman Spectroscopy

Large-Area, Fast-Gated Digital SiPM With Integrated TDC for Portable and Wearable Time-Domain NIRS

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