Materials Development for High Efficiency Superconducting Nanowire Single-Photon Detectors

Published

January 1, 2015

Author(s)

Adriana E. Lita, Varun B. Verma, Robert D. Horansky, Jeffrey M. Shainline, Richard P. Mirin, Sae Woo Nam

Abstract

Superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) based on ultra-thin films have become the preferred technology for applications that require high efficiency single-photon detectors with high speed, high timing resolution, and low dark count rates at near-infrared wavelengths. Since demonstration of the first SNSPD using NbN thin films, an increasingly larger number of materials are being explored. We investigate amorphous thin film alloys of MoSi, MoGe, and WRe with the goal of optimizing SNSPDs in terms of higher operation temperature, high efficiency and high speed. To explore material adequacy for SNSPDs, we have measured superconducting transition temperature (Tc) as a function of film thickness and sheet resistance, as well as critical current densities. In this paper we present our results comparing these materials with respect to WSi, another amorphous material widely used for SNSPD devices.

Proceedings Title

2015 Spring Materials Research Society Meeting

Conference Dates

April 6-10, 2015

Conference Location

San Francisco, CA

Pub Type

Conferences

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2015.544

Keywords

single photon detector

Citation

Lita, A. , Verma, V. , Horansky, R. , Shainline, J. , Mirin, R. and Nam, S. (2015), Materials Development for High Efficiency Superconducting Nanowire Single-Photon Detectors, 2015 Spring Materials Research Society Meeting, San Francisco, CA, [online], https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2015.544 (Accessed October 7, 2025)