Comparative investigation of silicon photomultipliers as possible photon detectors for the Cherenkov Telescope Array

One of most interesting improvements in CTA observatory will be the use of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) as pho- ton detectors for the telescope cameras. SiPMs have many key advantages compared with photomultiplier tubes, however they have also some drawbacks, such as dark noise, cross-talk and afterpulses. Moreover several companies produce a multitude of different types of SiPMs, since they stand as a very promising technology to replace photomultiplier tube in many applications. A comparative investigation of SiPMs’ properties using a semi-automated test setup is therefore a powerful instrument to identify the best device for CTA telescope cameras.