Series Resistor Method for Higher Signal-to-Noise Ratio and High Sensitivity in Superconducting Nanowire Single-Photon Detectors

Abstract

A series resistor method has been presented for higher signal-to-noise and high sensitivity in superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPD). This method has given a very high useful data yields exceeding 50% while still maintaining pure single-photon operation and wide dynamic range. The SNSPD signal is roughly proportional to the nanowire width, so narrow nanowire have poor signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) at widths from 4–30 nm and fabrication at these length scales is extremely challenging. In this paper, the authors have addressed the SNR issues and demonstrated that the higher SNR and high sensitivity can be achieved at 30-nm-nanowire superconducting single-photon detector for different IB values.
Keywords: Single photon, Signal to noise ratio, Sensitivity, Detection efficiency, Dark count rate, Superconducting nanowire