Entrance Windows in Germanium Low-Energy X-Ray Detectors

Abstract

We have found experimentally that high-purity Ge low-energy X-ray detectors have a relatively thick entrance window which renders them practically useless below ~ 2.3 KeV. A simple X-ray fluorescence experiment establishes clearly that the window is physically in the Ge material itself. Experiments with detectors made from different Ge crystals, and with Schottky barrier contacts of different metals indicate that the effect is due to a basic property of the transport of electrons near a surface. Theoretical considerations and a Monte Carlo calculation show that the window is caused by the escape of warm electrons which are the end product of a photo event. The mean free path of the electrons becomes longer as they lose energy by optical phonon collisions and they can be trapped at the surface before they are picked up by the electric field.