A single-photon detector based on a reverse-biased photodiode operated above its breakdown voltage. A carrier generated by photon absorption can trigger a self-sustaining impact ionization avalanche. Quenching lowers the bias to stop that avalanche; recovery creates detector dead time. Random internally generated carriers can also trigger indistinguishable pulses, producing dark counts. Single-photon avalanche diodes ordinarily detect an event rather than resolve the incident photon number. [ref]

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  1. Avalanche photodiode
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