Measurement of time resolution of thermoregulated SiPM for time of flight detectors

Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPM) are considered very promising in many application where high timing performances, low cost, hardness to radiation damage and single photon counting are requested. Such applications go from astrophysics, high energy accelerator physics to medical physics. A group of SiPM from Hamamatsu has been tested with a low noise fast amplifier based on a hetero-junction FET, mounted on a proper front end board. A first telescope prototype has been used to test the electronics and results are shown. The SiPM time resolution has been measured to be σ∼30 ps, in agreement with other studies reported in literature. The SiPM gain depends critically on temperature and a thermoelectric module to control the circuit was also studied in order to use the system for space detectors.