PIN diamond detector development for LYRA, the solar VUV radiometer on board PROBA II

LYRA (the LYman-alpha RAdiometer onboard PROBA-2) will use diamond detectors for the first time in space solar physics. A set of measurement campaigns was designed to obtain the EUV-to-VIS characterization of the diamond detectors and knowledge of their modes of operation. The outputs of this campaign provide the reference data needed for the optimization of the detectors, and for the LYRA channels definition. The measurements of responsivity in EUV and VUV spectral ranges have been carried out by the Physkalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) in Germany at the electron storage ring BESSY II. The detectors spectral responsivity measurements R(lambda) was done for the following wavelength ranges: 40 to 80 nm, 80 to 120 nm and 120 to 240 nm. The longer wavelength range from 2 10 nm to 827 nm was measured with the monochromatic light by using a Xe-lamp at IMO-IMOMEC. The diodes exhibit high photoresponse in the deep UV region and over five orders of magnitude in discrimination between deep UV (200 nm) and visible light (550 nm). (C) 2004 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.