Position-sensitive Schottky barrier photodiodes: Time-dependent signals and background saturation effects

Performance of position-sensitive Schottky barrier gold-silicon photodiodes in the presence of uniform radiant background levels is investigated. Proper conditions of reverse bias and external circuit loading are shown to reduce the background saturation effects while maintaining nearly constant responsivity. The response of the lateral photovoltaic photodetector to CW-modulated and short pulse-width light signals is described. The effect of signal time dependence on the lateral falloff parameter is considered.