Semiconductor detectors for high-luminosity environments

As the final touches are being put to the LHC detectors, the race is on to perfect technologies which could be used to confront the challenges of the ultra-high luminosities of the SLHC and International Linear Collider (ILC). These challenges include ever more hostile radiation environments, short signal shaping times and increasing emphasis on the highest possible granularity combined with the lowest possible mass. In the semiconductor detector field, dedicated studies have identified many mechanisms behind radiation damage and pointed the way towards the use of new techniques such as MCz silicon and p-type sensors. In the most extreme environments, completely new approaches, such as the use of diamond or 3D sensor detectors, will be essential. Pixel technology, which has been successfully employed to build large-scale vertex detection systems for the LHC, will be pushed towards higher density, lower mass and greater integration, to satisfy in particular the ILC requirements. We review the highlights of the current generation of semiconductor detectors and discuss some of the exciting prospects for future developments.