|
The superconducting nanowire single-photon detector (SNSPD) is a type of near-infrared and optical single-photon detector based on a current-biased superconducting nanowire.〔C. M. Natarajan, M. G. Tanner, and R. H. Hadfield, "Superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors: physics and applications," ''Superconductor Science and Technology'' 25, 063001 (2012), , (arXiv:1204.5560 )〕 It was first developed by scientists at Moscow State Pedagogical University and at the University of Rochester in 2001.〔A. D. Semenov, G. N. Gol’tsman and A. A. Korneev, "Quantum detection by current carrying superconducting film," ''Physica C'' 351, 349 (2001), 〕〔G. N. Gol'tsman ''et al.'', "Picosecond superconducting single-photon optical detector," ''Applied Physics Letters'' 79, 705 (2001), 〕 As of 2013, a superconducting nanowire single-photon detector is the fastest single-photon detector (SPD) for photon counting.〔 Francesco Marsili. ("High Efficiency in the Fastest Single-Photon Detector System" ). 2013. 〕 == Principle of operation == The SNSPD consists of a thin (≈ 5 nm) and narrow (≈ 100 nm) superconducting nanowire. The length is typically hundreds of micrometers, and the nanowire is patterned in a compact meander geometry to create a square or circular pixel with high detection efficiency. The nanowire is cooled well below its superconducting critical temperature and biased with a DC current that is close to but less than the superconducting critical current of the nanowire. A photon incident on the nanowire breaks Cooper pairs and reduces the local critical current below that of the bias current. This results in the formation of a localized non-superconducting region, or hotspot, with finite electrical resistance. This resistance is typically larger than the 50 ohm input impedance of the readout amplifier, and hence most of the bias current is shunted to the amplifier. This produces a measurable voltage pulse that is approximately equal to the bias current multiplied by 50 ohms. With most of the bias current flowing through the amplifier, the non-superconducting region cools and returns to the superconducting state. The time for the current to return to the nanowire is typically set by the inductive time constant of the nanowire, equal to the kinetic inductance of the nanowire divided by the impedance of the readout circuit.〔A. J. Kerman ''et al.'', "Kinetic-inductance-limited reset time of superconducting nanowire photon counters," ''Applied Physics Letters'' 88, 111116 (2006), , (arXiv:0510238 )〕 Proper self-resetting of the device requires that this inductive time constant be slower than the intrinsic cooling time of the nanowire hotspot.〔A. J. Annunziata ''et al.'', "Reset dynamics and latching in niobium superconducting nanowire single photon detectors," ''Journal of Applied Physics'' 108, 084507 (2010), , (arXiv:1008.0895 )〕 While the SNSPD does not offer the intrinsic energy or photon-number resolution of the superconducting transition edge sensor, the SNSPD is significantly faster than conventional transition edge sensors and operates at higher temperatures. Most SNSPDs are made of niobium nitride (NbN), which offers a relatively high superconducting critical temperature (≈ 10 K) and a very fast cooling time (<100 picoseconds).〔Yu. P. Gousev ''et al.'', "Electron-phonon interaction in disordered NbN films," ''Physica B'' 194-196, 1355 (1994), 〕 NbN devices have demonstrated device detection efficiencies as high as 67% at 1064 nm wavelength with count rates in the hundreds of MHz.〔K. M. Rosfjord ''et al.'', "Nanowire single-photon detector with an integrated optical cavity and anti-reflection coating," ''Optics Express'' 14, 527 (2006), 〕 NbN devices have also demonstrated jitter – the uncertainty in the photon arrival time – of less than 50 picoseconds,〔J. Zhang ''et al.'', "Response time characterization of NbN superconducting single-photon detectors," ''IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity'' 13, 180 (2003), 〕 as well as very low rates of dark counts, i.e. the occurrence of voltage pulses in the absence of a detected photon.〔J. Kitaygorsky ''et al.'', "Origin of dark counts in nanostructured NbN single-photon detectors," ''IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity'' 15, 545 (2005), 〕 In addition, the deadtime (time interval following a detection event during which the detector is not sensitive) is on the order of a few nanoseconds, this short deadtime translates into very high saturation count rates and enables antibunching measurements with a single detector.〔G. A. Steudle''et al.'', "Measuring the quantum nature of light with a single source and a single detector," ''Physical Review A'' 86, 053814 (2012), 〕 For the detection of longer wavelength photons, however, the detection efficiency of standard SNSPDs decreases significantly.〔A. Korneev ''et al.'', "Quantum efficiency and noise equivalent power of nanostructured NbN single-photon detectors in the wavelength range from visible to infrared," ''IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity'' 15, 571 (2005), 〕 Recent efforts to improve the detection efficiency at near-infrared and mid-infrared wavelengths include studies of narrower (20 nm and 30 nm wide) NbN nanowires〔F. Marsili ''et al.'', "Single-photon detectors based on ultranarrow superconducting nanowires," ''Nano Letters'' 11, 2048 (2011), , (arXiv:1012.4149 )〕 as well as studies of materials with lower superconducting critical temperatures than NbN (tungsten silicide,〔B. Baek, A. E. Lita, V. Verma and S. W. Nam, "Superconducting a-WxSi1−x nanowire single-photon detector with saturated internal quantum efficiency from visible to 1850 nm," ''Applied Physics Letters'' 98, 251105 (2011), 〕 niobium silicide,〔S. N. Dorenbos ''et al.'', "Low gap superconducting single photon detectors for infrared sensitivity," ''Applied Physics Letters'' 98, 251102 (2011), 〕 and tantalum nitride). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Superconducting nanowire single-photon detector」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|