Temperature dependence of dark current in a Si-pin photodiode

We have studied the temperature dependence of the forward dark current in a Si PIN photodiode. The temperature variations of the ideality factor and saturation current suggest that, depending on temperature and bias, both tunneling enhanced interface recombination and bulk recombination contribute to the conduction process. Furthermore, the capacitance measurements reveal that the doping density distribution is closer to the case of a linearly graded junction with an impurity gradient that is practically temperature independent.