An interdigitated diffusion-based In(0.53)Ga(0.47)As lateral PIN photodiode

A novel 3D modeling of a lateral PIN photodiode (LPP) is presented utilizing In 0.53 Ga 0.47 As as the absorbing layer. The LPP has profound advantages compared to the vertical PIN photodiode (VPD) mainly due to the ease of fabrication where diffusion or ion implantation can be used to form the p+ and n+ wells in the absorbing layer. The device has an interdigitated electrode structure to maximize optical absorption. At a wavelength of 1550 nm, optical power of 5 Wcm -2 and 5 V reverse bias voltage, the device achieved responsivity of 0.5 A/W. The -3dB frequency response of the device was at 14 GHz and it is able to cater for 10 Gbit/s optical communication networks.