Silicon avalanche photodiodes as detectors for photon correlation experiments

In view of time correlated photon-counting experiments using wavelengths at the red end of the electromagnetic spectrum, we developed a simple electronic circuit for periodical gated quenching of silicon avalanche photodiodes. We compare the performance of this device with commercially available passive and active quenching modules and a reference photomultiplier. The detection system's nonlinearities, i.e., dead time and afterpulsing, lead to direct and indirect distortions of photocount correlation functions. We characterize this nonlinear behavior by measuring intensity auto- and cross-correlation functions and supply nonlinearity parameters for each of the four detection systems. In addition, transfer functions are given which allow an estimate for the highest count rates accessible for each detection system. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics. [S0034-6748(98)01810-3].