Design and First Tests of a Radiation-Hard Pixel Sensor for the European X-Ray Free-Electron Laser

The high intensity and high repetition rate of the European X-ray Free-Electron Laser, presently under construction in Hamburg, requires silicon sensors which can stand X-ray doses of up to 1 GGy for 3 years of operation at high bias voltage. Within the AGIPD Collaboration the X-ray-radiation damage in MOS Capacitors and Gate-Controlled Diodes fabricated by four vendors on high-ohmic n-type silicon with two crystal orientations and different technological parameters, has been studied for doses between 1 kGy and 1 GGy. The extracted values of oxide-charge and surface-current densities have been used in TCAD simulations, and the layout and technological parameters of the AGIPD pixel sensor optimized. It is found that the optimized layout for high X-ray doses is significantly different from the one for non-irradiated sensors. First sensors and test structures have been delivered in early 2013. Measurement results for X-ray doses of 0 to 10 MGy and their comparison to simulations are presented. They demonstrate that the optimization has been successful and that the sensors fulfill the required specifications.