Patent ID: 7723166

Claim:
An optoelectronic device for detecting electromagnetic radiation, comprising: a first electrode; a first layer of semiconductor material over the first electrode, the first layer of semiconductor material being heavily-doped semiconductor material; a second layer of semiconductor material over the first layer of semiconductor material; to the extent that the second layer of semiconductor material comprises any dopant, the second semiconductor layer having a lower concentration of dopant than the first layer of semiconductor material; a layer of semiconductor-enriched insulator over the second layer of semiconductor material; a second electrode over a first portion of the layer of semiconductor-enriched insulator; the second electrode having at least one window extending therethrough to a second portion of the layer of semiconductor-enriched insulator; circuitry electrically connected to the first and second electrodes; and the electromagnetic radiation being radiated through the at least one window and into the semiconductor-enriched insulator to create electron-hole pairs that are detected by the circuitry.