according to the requirement of detector in high energy physics and nuclear physics national scientific equipment, the large-area micro-channel plate photomultiplier(mcp-pmt) different from dynode pmt was researched. the large-area mcp-pmt had low-background glass and microchannel plate multiplier. using sb-k-cs as photocathode, mcp-pmt enjoyed very high quantum efficiency at 350- 450 nm. with double mcps as electron amplifier, the gain could reach 107. the detection efficiency and single photon detection of large-area pmt was improved. compared with conventional dynode pmt, this mcp-pmt is a completely new design in structure and has better ratio of spectrum peak to valley, high gain, better anode uniformity, fast response time in single photoelectron detection. © 2017, editorial board of journal of infrared and laser engineering. all right reserved.