
Press Releases
Avalanche photodiode (APD) evaluation board simplifies infrared system development
Sheffield, UK, 9th July 2025: Phlux Technology, a manufacturer of avalanche photodiode (APD) infrared sensors, is offering an evaluation board for its Aura family of Noiseless InGaAs® avalanche photodiodes (APDs). The APDs are used as 1550 nm infrared sensors and claim 12X greater sensitivity than traditional devices in applications spanning laser rangefinders, optical networks and test equipment, and LiDAR.
The 70 mm x 60 mm board, which comes with a MAX40661 transimpedance amplifier, is designed to accelerate design and development by simplifying the evaluation and measurement of Phlux’s Aura line of APDs (200, 80, and 30 µm devices). Customers can quickly set-up measurements such as APD dark current, responsivity, Noise Equivalent Power (NEP), Input Referred Noise (IRN), and dynamic characteristics like impulse response, rise and fall times, and output swing to compare with existing designs. The board has a protected DC-coupled input and an AC-coupled differential or single-ended output via 50-Ohm SMA connectors. It requires a single, low-noise +3.3 V DC power supply, and the recommended Vbias is preset to meet the required level of responsivity. It is recommended for use with a 250 MHz bandwidth oscilloscope. …