2 research outputs found
Origin of intrinsic dark count in superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors
The origin of the decoherence in superconducting nanowire single-photon
detectors, the so-called dark count, was investigated. We measured the
direct-current characteristics and bias-current dependencies of the dark count
rate in a wide range of temperatures from 0.5 K to 4 K, and analyzed the
results by theoretical models of thermal fluctuations of vortices. Our results
indicate that the current-assisted unbinding of vortex-antivortex pairs is the
dominant origin of the dark count.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figure
Superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors: physics and applications
Single-photon detectors based on superconducting nanowires (SSPDs or SNSPDs)
have rapidly emerged as a highly promising photon-counting technology for
infrared wavelengths. These devices offer high efficiency, low dark counts and
excellent timing resolution. In this review, we consider the basic SNSPD
operating principle and models of device behaviour. We give an overview of the
evolution of SNSPD device design and the improvements in performance which have
been achieved. We also evaluate device limitations and noise mechanisms. We
survey practical refrigeration technologies and optical coupling schemes for
SNSPDs. Finally we summarize promising application areas, ranging from quantum
cryptography to remote sensing. Our goal is to capture a detailed snapshot of
an emerging superconducting detector technology on the threshold of maturity.Comment: 27 pages, 5 figures, Review article preprint versio