Utilization of spatial non-uniformity of silicon photodetectors for vibration monitoring. (July 2019) - Santhanakrishnan, T.
Graphical abstract: Highlights: Spatial non-uniform responsivities in photodetectors mostly determine applications. Photodetectors with non-uniform responses are unused in measurements. Concept of utility of these detectors differs with strategy and uses are unlimited. Repeatability of spatial non-uniform response in photodetectors foster applications. Restored the utility of such photodetectors and demonstrated vibration monitoring application. Abstract: Silicon photodetectors are extensively used for a variety of optical applications because of their unique advantages. It is presumed that their responsivities are uniform in active sensing area, which is not true in actual scenario. In such scenario, the spatial non-uniformity, if any, can introduce error in measurements. Accurate determination of the spatial responsivity of these photodetectors is highly essential for any application. In this paper, the spatial non-uniformities are mapped for two types of photodetectors. Subsequently, this paper demonstrates with corroborating experimental results that photodetectors with spatial non-uniformities can also be potentially utilized for vibration monitoring applications.