Precipitation of Lithium in Germanium during Ion Drift

The precipitation of lithium in germanium has been investigated by Morin and Reiss and by Swalin and Weltzin. The theories developed by these investigators have been used to calculate the rate of lithium precipitation in a typical lithium-drifted germanium detector. It is found that precipitation occurs predominantly in the n+ - region of the detector. Precipitation in the intrinsic layer can be avoided, in general, by maintaining the lithium solubility at a high value in this layer. This will be the case if the electron concentration in the intrinsic layer is kept at a small value at all times.