Simulating Signals in Silicon Sensors

Within CERN’s Experimental Physics (EP) department, Work Package 1.1 of the R&D programme (EP R&D WP 1.1) is dedicated to the development and characterization of hybrid silicon detectors. A novel technology studied by the group is the Silicon Electron Multiplier (SiEM), an innovative pixel-sensor concept for future detectors that aims to combine fine pitch, internal gain, and radiation hardness. Within this context, this Summer Student project focused on simulation studies of silicon devices using two complementary frameworks — Synopsys Sentaurus TCAD and Garfield++ — with two main goals:

• Benchmark Synopsys Sentaurus TCAD transient vs. Garfield++: simulate a planar pixel diode with both tools, loading TCAD electrostatic and weighting fields into Garfield++ and comparing its Monte Carlo response with the “classical” transient one.

• Simulate and optimize the SiEM device: quantify performance in terms of collected charge and time resolution.

This report documents the methodology for benchmarking a planar pixel diode and the SiEM simulation studies, which provide insights into its optimization