Simple autocorrelation method for thoroughly characterizing single-photon detectors

We introduce and demonstrate a simple and highly sensitive method for characterizing single-photon detectors. This method is based on analyzing multi-order correlations among time-tagged detection events from a device under calibrated continuous-wave illumination. First- and second-order properties...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Optics express 2017-08, Vol.25 (17), p.20352-20362
Main Authors: Wayne, Michael A, Bienfang, Joshua C, Polyakov, Sergey V
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:We introduce and demonstrate a simple and highly sensitive method for characterizing single-photon detectors. This method is based on analyzing multi-order correlations among time-tagged detection events from a device under calibrated continuous-wave illumination. First- and second-order properties such as detection efficiency, dark count rate, afterpulse probability, dead time, and reset behavior are measured with high accuracy from a single data set, as well as higher-order properties such as higher-order afterpulse effects. While the technique is applicable to any type of click/no-click detector, we apply it to two different single-photon avalanche diodes, and we find that it reveals a heretofore unreported afterpulse effect due to detection events that occur during the device reset.
ISSN:1094-4087
1094-4087
DOI:10.1364/OE.25.020352