A photomultiplier is a device that converts

incident photon A photon () is an elementary particle that is a quantum of the electromagnetic field, including electromagnetic radiation such as light and radio waves, and the force carrier for the electromagnetic force. Photons are massless particles that can ...

s into an

electrical signal A signal is both the process and the result of transmission of data over some media accomplished by embedding some variation. Signals are important in multiple subject fields including signal processing, information theory and biology. In ...

. Kinds of photomultiplier include: *

Photomultiplier tube Photomultiplier tubes (photomultipliers or PMTs for short) are extremely sensitive detectors of light in the ultraviolet, visible light, visible, and near-infrared ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum. They are members of the class of vacuum t ...

, a

vacuum tube A vacuum tube, electron tube, thermionic valve (British usage), or tube (North America) is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric voltage, potential difference has been applied. It ...

converting incident photons into an electric signal. Photomultiplier tubes (PMTs for short) are members of the class of

s, and more specifically vacuum

phototube A phototube or photoelectric cell is a type of gas filled tube, gas-filled or vacuum tube that is sensitive to light. Such a tube is more correctly called a 'photoemissive cell' to distinguish it from photovoltaic or photoconductive cells. Photo ...

s, which are extremely sensitive detectors of light in the

ultraviolet Ultraviolet radiation, also known as simply UV, is electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of 10–400 nanometers, shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight and constitutes about 10% of ...

, visible, and

near-infrared Infrared (IR; sometimes called infrared light) is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than that of visible light but shorter than microwaves. The infrared spectral band begins with the waves that are just longer than those of ...

ranges of the

electromagnetic spectrum The electromagnetic spectrum is the full range of electromagnetic radiation, organized by frequency or wavelength. The spectrum is divided into separate bands, with different names for the electromagnetic waves within each band. From low to high ...

. **

Magnetic photomultiplier Photomultiplier tubes (photomultipliers or PMTs for short) are extremely sensitive detectors of light in the ultraviolet, visible light, visible, and near-infrared ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum. They are members of the class of vacuum t ...

, developed by the Soviets in the 1930s. **

Electrostatic photomultiplier Photomultiplier tubes (photomultipliers or PMTs for short) are extremely sensitive detectors of light in the ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum. They are members of the class of vacuum tubes, more spe ...

, a kind of photomultiplier tube demonstrated by Jan Rajchman of RCA Laboratories in Princeton, NJ in the late 1930s which became the standard for all future commercial photomultipliers. The first mass-produced photomultiplier, the Type 931, was of this design and is still commercially produced today. *

Silicon photomultiplier In solid-state electronics, silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) are single-photon-sensitive devices based on pixels of single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) implemented on common silicon substrate. The dimension of each single avalanche diode can ...

, a

solid-state device Solid-state electronics are semiconductor electronics: electronic equipment that use semiconductor devices such as transistors, diodes and integrated circuits (ICs). The term is also used as an adjective for devices in which semiconductor elect ...

converting incident photons into an electric signal. Silicon photomultipliers, often called "SiPM" in the literature, are solid-state single-

photon A photon () is an elementary particle that is a quantum of the electromagnetic field, including electromagnetic radiation such as light and radio waves, and the force carrier for the electromagnetic force. Photons are massless particles that can ...

-sensitive devices based on

Single-photon avalanche diode A single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD), also called Geiger-mode avalanche photodiode (G-APD or GM-APD) is a solid-state photodetector within the same family as photodiodes and avalanche photodiodes (APDs), while also being fundamentally linked wi ...

(SPAD) implemented on common silicon substrate.Silicon Photom ultiplier Technology at STMicroelectronics From SPAD to SiPM
/ref>

References

{{SIA * Particle detectors