  The potential of photon detectors to achieve precise timing information is of
increasing importance in many domains, PET and CT scanners in medical imaging
and particle physics detectors, amongst others. The goal to increase by an
order of magnitude the sensitivity of PET scanners and to deliver, via
time-of-flight (TOF), true space points for each event, as well as the
constraints set by future particle accelerators require a further leap in time
resolution of scintillator-based ionizing radiation detectors, reaching
eventually a few picoseconds resolution for sub MeV energy deposits. In spite
of the impressive progress made in the last decade by several manufacturers,
the Single Photon Time Resolution (SPTR) of SiPMs is still in the range of
70-120ps FWHM, whereas a value of 10ps or even less would be desirable. Such a
step requires a break with traditional methods and the development of novel
technologies. The possibility of combining the extraordinary potential of
nanophotonics with new approaches offered by modern microelectronics and 3D
electronic integration opens novel perspectives for the development of a new
generation of metamaterial-based SiPMs with unprecedented photodetection
efficiency and timing resolution.
