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Title: Impedance matched superconducting nanowire photodetector for single- and multi-photon detection

Abstract

Conventional readout of a superconducting nanowire single-photon detector (SNSPD) sets an upper bound on the output voltage to be the product of the bias current and the load impedance, IB×Zload, where Zload is limited to 50Ω in standard RF electronics. This limit is broken/exceeded by interfacing the 50Ω load and the SNSPD using an integrated superconducting transmission line taper. The taper is a transformer that effectively loads the SNSPD with high impedance without latching. The taper increases the amplitude of the detector output while preserving the fast rising edge. Using a taper with a starting width of 500 nm, a 3.6× higher pulse amplitude, 3.7× faster slew rate, and 25.1 ps smaller timing jitter was observed. The taper also makes the detector's output voltage sensitive to the number of photon-induced hotspots and enables photon number resolution.

Inventors:
; ; ; ;
Issue Date:
Research Org.:
Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA (United States); California Institute of Technology (CalTech), Pasadena, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE; National Science Foundation (NSF); US Army Research Office (ARO); National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
OSTI Identifier:
1986879
Patent Number(s):
11522115
Application Number:
16/808,904
Assignee:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA); California Institute of Technology (Pasadena, CA)
DOE Contract Number:  
80NM0018D004; ECCS1509486; W911NF-16-2-0192
Resource Type:
Patent
Resource Relation:
Patent File Date: 03/04/2020
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Citation Formats

Zhu, Di, Colangelo, Marco, Korzh, Boris, Shaw, Matthew, and Berggren, Karl K. Impedance matched superconducting nanowire photodetector for single- and multi-photon detection. United States: N. p., 2022. Web.
Zhu, Di, Colangelo, Marco, Korzh, Boris, Shaw, Matthew, & Berggren, Karl K. Impedance matched superconducting nanowire photodetector for single- and multi-photon detection. United States.
Zhu, Di, Colangelo, Marco, Korzh, Boris, Shaw, Matthew, and Berggren, Karl K. Tue . "Impedance matched superconducting nanowire photodetector for single- and multi-photon detection". United States. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1986879.
@article{osti_1986879,
title = {Impedance matched superconducting nanowire photodetector for single- and multi-photon detection},
author = {Zhu, Di and Colangelo, Marco and Korzh, Boris and Shaw, Matthew and Berggren, Karl K.},
abstractNote = {Conventional readout of a superconducting nanowire single-photon detector (SNSPD) sets an upper bound on the output voltage to be the product of the bias current and the load impedance, IB×Zload, where Zload is limited to 50Ω in standard RF electronics. This limit is broken/exceeded by interfacing the 50Ω load and the SNSPD using an integrated superconducting transmission line taper. The taper is a transformer that effectively loads the SNSPD with high impedance without latching. The taper increases the amplitude of the detector output while preserving the fast rising edge. Using a taper with a starting width of 500 nm, a 3.6× higher pulse amplitude, 3.7× faster slew rate, and 25.1 ps smaller timing jitter was observed. The taper also makes the detector's output voltage sensitive to the number of photon-induced hotspots and enables photon number resolution.},
doi = {},
journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {2022},
month = {12}
}

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