Progress in the development of large-area submillimeter-resolution CdZnTe strip detectors

We report progress in ongoing measurements of the performance of a sub-millimeter pitch CdZnTe strip detector developed as a prototype for astronomical instruments. Strip detectors can be used to provide two-dimensional position resolution with fewer electronic channels than pixellated arrays. Arrays of this type are under development for the position-sensitive image plane detector for a coded-aperture telescope operating in the hard x-ray range of 20-200 keV. The prototype is a 1.5 mm thick, 64 by 64 orthogonal stripe CdZnTe detector of 0.375 mm pitch in both dimensions, approximately one square inch of sensitive area. In addition to energy and spatial resolution capabilities, as reported last year, we demonstrate the imaging capabilities and discuss uniformity of response across an 8 by 8 stripe, 64 'pixel', segment of detector. A technique for determination of the depth of photon interaction is discussed and initial results related to depth determination are presented. Issues related to the design and development of readout electronics, the packaging and production of strip detectors and the production of compact strip detector modules, including detector and readout electronics, are also discussed.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.