Since 2009 sglux produces SiC based UV photodiode chips with active areas from 0.04 mm² to 36 mm². The 36mm² SiC UV photodiode is the largest SiC UV photodiode offered worldwide.

SiC provides the unique property of extreme radiation hardness, near-perfect visible blindness, low dark current, high speed and low noise. These features make SiC the best available material for semiconductor UV detectors. The UV photodiodes from sglux can be permanently operated at up to 170¡C.  The temperature coefficient is also low, <0,1%/K. Because of the low dark current  (fA range), very low UV radiation intensities can be measured reliably. SiC photodiodes are available as  broad band devices or with optical filters providing UV-A, UV-B, or UV-C-only sensitivity, erythemal action curve or ICNIRP compliance. Each sensor can be ordered as a TOCON with integrated pre-amplifier.

Link to product configurator

The sglux R&D team has more than 15 years of experience in producing UV sensitive semiconductor chips. This skill powered the SiC R&D work focussing extreme radiation hardness. The German PTB analyzed that the radiation hardness of the sglux SiC UV chips could be improved by factor two compared the UV sensing chips produced by Cree, Inc. until 2007. Furthermore the visible blindness of the sglux chips could be improved by five orders of magnitude compared with Cree SiC chips now totalling to more than ten orders of magnitude of visible blindness.

Link to PTB publication

The R&D work was done in cooperation with the Ferdinand-Braun-Institut Leibniz-Institut fuer Hoechstfrequenztechnik (Process Development), the Leibniz-Institut fuer Kristallzuechtung (Epitaxy) and Cree, Inc. The machines of the two research institutes are used for the production of the SiC chips.

Link to FBH publication

Link to IKZ