Claims
- 1. A microdynode device comprising:(a) a porous structure defining an entry side, and an exit side, said structure including a plurality of dynode layers and a plurality of electrically insulating spacer layers disposed in alternating sequence between said entry side and said exit side, said structure defining a plurality of elongated microchannels extending side-by-side through said layers, each said microchannel having an entrance aperture adjacent said entry side and an exit aperture adjacent said exit side, and a lengthwise direction between said ends, each said microchannel having a mean diameter less than about 150 microns, said structure defining walls surrounding each microchannel from said entry aperture to said exit aperture and segregating each said microchannel from the other said microchannels; (b) an electron-emissive material in said microchannels within said dynode layers; and (c) means for connecting said dynode layers to biasing voltages wherein said electron-emissive material is selected from the group consisting of amorphous and crystalline: (d) Group IV semiconductors; (e) semiconductors having a composition according to the formula AxB1−xCyD1−y wherein A and B are each independently selected from the group consisting of B, Al, Ga, In, and Tl, wherein C and D are each independently selected from the group consisting of N, P, As, Sb and Bi and wherein x and y are in the range from 0 to 1; and (f) n and p types of the semiconductors recited in (d) and (e).
- 2. A microdynode device comprising:(a) a porous structure defining an entry side, and an exit side, said structure including a plurality of dynode layers and a plurality of electrically insulating spacer layers disposed in alternating sequence between said entry side and said exit side, said structure defining a plurality of elongated microchannels extending side-by-side through said layers, each said microchannel having an entrance aperture adjacent said entry side and an exit aperture adjacent said exit side, and a lengthwise direction between said ends, each said microchannel having a mean diameter less than about 150 microns, said structure defining microchannel walls surrounding each microchannel from said entry aperture to said exit aperture and segregating each said microchannel from the other said microchannels, said dynode layers defining dynode regions of said microchannel walls; (b) an electron-emissive material in said microchannels within said dynode layers, and (c) means for connecting said dynode layers to biasing voltages, wherein said dynode layers of said structure are formed from a nonconductive or semiconductive structural material with a conductive material overlying said structural material on said dynode regions of said microchannel walls.
- 3. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said conductive material is selected from the group consisting of Al, Ni, Cr, Au, Cu, Be, Ag, Mg and alloys thereof.
- 4. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said structural material consists essentially of silicon.
- 5. A microdynode device comprising:(a) a porous structure defining an entry side, and an exit side, said structure including a plurality of dynode layers and a plurality of electrically insulating spacer layers disposed in alternating sequence between said entry side and said exit side, said structure defining a plurality of elongated microchannels extending side-by-side through said layers, each said microchannel having an entrance aperture adjacent said entry side and an exit aperture adjacent said exit side, and a lengthwise direction between said ends, each said microchannel having a mean diameter less than about 150 microns, said structure defining walls surrounding each microchannel from said entry aperture to said exit aperture and segregating each said microchannel from the other said microchannels; (b) a cathode structure overlying said entry side of said porous structure so that regions of said cathode structure are exposed to said entrance apertures of said microchannels, said regions of said cathode structure exposed to said entrance apertures being adapted to emit electrons; (c) an anode structure overlying said exit side of said porous structure; (d) an electron-emissive material in said microchannels within said dynode layers; and (e) means for connecting said dynode layers to biasing voltages; wherein said cathode structure and said anode structure are sealingly connected to said porous structure, to form a unitary sealed structure, and wherein said porous structure, said cathode structure and said anode structure cooperatively maintain a vacuum within said microchannels.
- 6. A device as claimed in claim 5 wherein said cathode structure includes a photocathode adapted to emit electrons in response to light impinging on the photocathode.
- 7. A device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said anode structure includes a plurality of separate anodes overlying said exit apertures of said microchannels.
- 8. A device as claimed in claim 7 wherein said plurality of separate anodes includes individual anodes aligned with individual exit apertures of said microchannels, whereby the electrons impinging on the individual anode associated with each microchannel will represent light impinging on the region of the photocathode overlying the entry aperture of that microchannel.
- 9. A device as claimed in claim 5 wherein said anode structure includes a phosphor layer adapted to emit light in response to electrons impinging on the phosphor, and wherein said cathode structure includes a plurality of individual cathodes and means for selectively energizing individual cathodes to cause individual cathodes to emit, whereby selected portions of said phosphor layer may be actuated to emit light by energizing selected ones of said cathodes.
- 10. A microdynode device comprising:(a) a porous structure defining an entry side, and an exit side, said structure including a plurality of dynode layers and a plurality of electrically insulating spacer layers disposed in alternating sequence between said entry side and said exit side, said structure defining a plurality of elongated microchannels extending side-by-side through said layers, each said microchannel having an entrance aperture adjacent said entry side and an exit aperture adjacent said exit side, and a lengthwise direction between said ends, each said microchannel having a mean diameter less than about 150 microns, said structure defining walls surrounding each microchannel from said entry aperture to said exit aperture and segregating each said microchannel from the other said microchannels; (b) an anode structure overlying said exit side of said porous structure, said anode structure including a phosphor layer adapted to emit light in response to electrons impinging on the phosphor; (c) a cathode structure overlying said entry side of said porous structure so that regions of said cathode structure are exposed to said entrance apertures of said microchannels, said regions of said cathode structure exposed to said entrance apertures being adapted to emit electrons, said cathode structure including a plurality of individual cathodes and means for selectively energizing individual cathodes to cause individual cathodes to emit, whereby selected portions of said phosphor layer may be actuated to emit light by energizing selected ones of said cathodes; (d) an electron-emissive material in said microchannels within said dynode layers; and (e) means for connecting said dynode layers to biasing voltages.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/027,866, filed Oct. 30, 1996, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
US Referenced Citations (15)
Non-Patent Literature Citations (2)
Entry |
Nuclear Instruments & Methods in Physics Research, A 343 (1994) 263-267 “Status of the Ceramic Multichannel PM tube”, Comby et al. |
International Conference on Inorganic Scintillators and Their Applications, “Performances of Multi-Channel Ceramic Photomultipliers”, Sep. 1995, DELFT University of Technology, The Netherlands, Comby et al. |
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60/027866 |
Oct 1996 |
US |