Probabilistic vortex crossing criterion for superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors

Superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors have emerged as a promising technology for quantum metrology from the mid-infrared to ultraviolet frequencies. Despite recent experimental successes, a predictive model to describe the detection event in these detectors is needed to optimize the detec...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of applied physics 2020-04, Vol.127 (14)
Main Authors: Jahani, Saman, Yang, Li-Ping, Buganza Tepole, Adrián, Bardin, Joseph C., Tang, Hong X., Jacob, Zubin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied physics
Criteria
Current distribution
Detectors
Efficiency
Finite difference method
Nanowires
Niobium nitride
Photon absorption
Photons
Potential barriers
Prediction models
Pulse duration
Quantum efficiency
Response functions
Sensors
Statistical analysis
Superconductivity
Timing jitter
Vibration
Vortices
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Summary:Superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors have emerged as a promising technology for quantum metrology from the mid-infrared to ultraviolet frequencies. Despite recent experimental successes, a predictive model to describe the detection event in these detectors is needed to optimize the detection metrics. Here, we propose a probabilistic criterion for single-photon detection based on single-vortex (flux quanta) crossing the width of the nanowire. Our model makes a connection between the dark counts and photon counts near the detection threshold. The finite-difference calculations demonstrate that a change in the bias current distribution as a result of the photon absorption significantly increases the probability of single-vortex crossing even if the vortex potential barrier has not vanished completely. We estimate the instrument response function and show that the timing uncertainty of this vortex tunneling process corresponds to a fundamental limit in timing jitter of the click event. We demonstrate a trade-space between this intrinsic (quantum) timing jitter, quantum efficiency, and dark count rate in TaN, WSi, and NbN superconducting nanowires at different experimental conditions. Our detection model can also explain the experimental observation of exponential decrease in the quantum efficiency of SNSPDs at lower energies. This leads to a pulse-width dependency in the quantum efficiency, and it can be further used as an experimental test to compare across different detection models.
ISSN:0021-8979
1089-7550
DOI:10.1063/1.5132961