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A fast active-quenching circuit (FAQC) based on SiGe Hetero-junction Bipolar Transistor (HBT) and InGaP/GaAs HBT integrated circuits is designed for use with free-running single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs). The performances of both InGaAsP/InP SPAD and InGaAs/InP SPAD are tested. Results show that the typical avalanche duration using the FAQC is 1.6 ns, and the total afterpulse probability is lower than 10% when the hold-off time is above 1 \mu \texts at 1.5 V excess bias or 10 \mu \texts at 3.0 V excess bias. This result is comparable to recently developed negative-feedback avalanche diodes. The FAQC is based on commercially available integrated circuits and can be used with typical SPADs, providing a low-cost approach to build a free-running single-photon detector. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]