Thermal properties of NbN single-photon detectors

We investigate thermal properties of a NbN single-photon detector capable of unit internal detection efficiency. Using an independent calibration of the coupling losses we determine the absolute optical power absorbed by the NbN film and, via a resistive superconductor thermometry, the thermal resis...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:arXiv.org 2019-01
Main Authors: Baeva, E M, Sidorova, M V, Korneev, A A, Smirnov, K V, Divochy, A V, Morozov, P V, Zolotov, P I, Vakhtomin, Yu B, Semenov, A V, Klapwijk, T M, Khrapai, V S, Goltsman, G N
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Lower bounds
Niobium nitride
Temperature dependence
Thermal energy
Thermal resistance
Thermodynamic properties
Upper bounds
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We investigate thermal properties of a NbN single-photon detector capable of unit internal detection efficiency. Using an independent calibration of the coupling losses we determine the absolute optical power absorbed by the NbN film and, via a resistive superconductor thermometry, the thermal resistance Z(T) of the NbN film in dependence of temperature. In principle, this approach permits a simultaneous measurement of the electron-phonon and phonon-escape contributions to the energy relaxation, which in our case is ambiguous for their similar temperature dependencies. We analyze the Z(T) within the two-temperature model and impose an upper bound on the ratio of electron and phonon heat capacities in NbN, which is surprisingly close to a recent theoretical lower bound for the same quantity in similar devices.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.1810.03134