Holder for fast photodiodes in TO-18 package

The design of a holder for fast photodiodes is described. These holders have been tested with commercially available photodiodes in a standard TO-18 package using delta light pulses from a synchronously pumped cw dye laser. Results of the measurements are presented and the holder is shown to perform well even for an experimental photodiode with a rise time of less than 40 ps and a FWHM of 80 ps.