Photon-Noise Limited Performance in Aluminum LEKIDs

Mauskopf, Philip Daniel; Doyle, S.; Barry, P. S.; Rowe, S.; Bidead, A.; Tucker, C.; Castillo, E.; Monfardini, A.; Goupy, J.; Calvo, M.

doi:10.1007/s10909-013-1069-1

Cited by 26 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…This kind of detector exhibits background-limited performance under ideal, i.e. single pixel read-out, cold blackbody, electrical measurement, conditions A&A 592, A26 (2016) (Mauskopf et al 2014), and NEP in the high 10 −17 range under the 5-10 pW per pixel load typical of the NIKA camera at 150 GHz (Monfardini et al 2014). In this work, we begin using two LEKID arrays consisting of hundreds of pixels, observing at central frequency of 100 and 150 GHz originally optimised for the NIKA ground-based instrument, to measure their sensitivity and the impact of ionising particles under a background representative of a space environment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maturity of lumped element kinetic inductance detectors for space-borne instruments in the range between 80 and 180 GHz

Catalano

Benoı̂t

Bourrion

et al. 2016

A&A

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This work intends to give the state-of-the-art of our knowledge of the performance of lumped element kinetic inductance detectors (LEKIDs) at millimetre wavelengths (from 80 to 180 GHz). We evaluate their optical sensitivity under typical background conditions that are representative of a space environment and their interaction with ionising particles. Two LEKID arrays, originally designed for ground-based applications and composed of a few hundred pixels each, operate at a central frequency of 100 and 150 GHz (∆ν/ν about 0.3). Their sensitivities were characterised in the laboratory using a dedicated closed-cycle 100 mK dilution cryostat and a sky simulator, allowing for the reproduction of realistic, space-like observation conditions. The impact of cosmic rays was evaluated by exposing the LEKID arrays to alpha particles ( 241 Am) and X sources ( 109 Cd), with a read-out sampling frequency similar to those used for Planck HFI (about 200 Hz), and also with a high resolution sampling level (up to 2 MHz) to better characterise and interpret the observed glitches. In parallel, we developed an analytical model to rescale the results to what would be observed by such a LEKID array at the second Lagrangian point. We show that LEKID arrays behave adequately in space-like conditions with a measured noise equivalent power close to the cosmic microwave background photon noise and an impact of cosmic rays smaller with respect to those observed with Planck satellite detectors.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maturity of lumped element kinetic inductance detectors for space-borne instruments in the range between 80 and 180 GHz

Catalano

Benoı̂t

Bourrion

et al. 2016

A&A

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“…MKIDs are photon noise limited for various frequencies [10][11][12][13][14][15] . The level of experimental detail that has now been achieved 13,16,17 calls for a more detailed understanding of the absorption of radiation.…”

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confidence: 99%

The non-equilibrium response of a superconductor to pair-breaking radiation measured over a broad frequency band

Visser

Yates

Guruswamy

et al. 2015

Applied Physics Letters

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We have measured the absorption of terahertz radiation in a BCS superconductor over a broad range of frequencies from 200 GHz to 1.1 THz, using a broadband antenna-lens system and a tantalum microwave resonator. From low frequencies, the response of the resonator rises rapidly to a maximum at the gap edge of the superconductor. From there on the response drops to half the maximum response at twice the pairbreaking energy. At higher frequencies, the response rises again due to trapping of pair-breaking phonons in the superconductor. In practice this is the first measurement of the frequency dependence of the quasiparticle creation efficiency due to pair-breaking in a superconductor. The efficiency, calculated from the different nonequilibrium quasiparticle distribution functions at each frequency, is in agreement with the measurements.In a superconductor at low temperature, most of the electrons are bound in Cooper pairs. These pairs can be broken into quasiparticles by absorbing photons with an energy larger than the binding energy. This mechanism is frequently used to detect submillimetre and terahertz radiation using conventional superconductors such as aluminium. Pair-breaking detectors are usually assumed to measure the number of quasiparticles created by the absorbed radiation. The observable that measures the number of quasiparticles varies from the complex conductivity for microwave kinetic inductance detectors 1 (MKIDs), the current through a tunnel junction 2 to the capacitance of a small superconducting island 3 . These observables are mainly sensitive to quasiparticles with an energy close to the gap energy of the superconductor, ∆. The working principle of these detectors is usually explained in terms of an effective number of quasiparticles which is maintained by a balance between the radiation power and electron-phonon interaction (recombination) 4 . To convert the power (P ) into a number of quasiparticles (N qp ), the quasiparticle creation efficiency η pb is introduced, which compares the actual N qp with the maximum possible N qp when all created quasiparticles would have an energy ∆. Since Cooper pairs have a binding a) Electronic mail: p.j.devisser@tudelft.nl; Current address: Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, Geneva 1211, Switzerland energy of 2∆, a photon with an energy in between 2∆ and 4∆ can still only create two quasiparticles. The rest of the energy is lost through electron-phonon scattering, hence η pb < 1. For higher energies η pb depends on the phonon trapping factor, which determines whether high energy phonons are directly lost or can break an additional pair. η pb is therefore not an efficiency in the sense that photons are lost, but it reduces the detector responsivity. MKIDs are superconducting microwave resonators which sense the number of quasiparticles through the complex conductivity of the superconductor. The phase response (θ) of such a resonator can be approximated bywhere σ 2 is the imaginary part of the complex conductivity. For the last propo...

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“…Value of reduces to at K. Secondly, we performed a frequency sweep of I and Q near with homodyne read-out to extract parameters needed for calculation of frequency perturbations . Finally, the tone was fixed at and time streams of I and Q data were recorded and converted into according to [19]: . Absorption of in-band radiation results in the shift of and decrease of relative to equilibrium state.…”

Section: Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design and Characterisation of Titanium Nitride Subarrays of Kinetic Inductance Detectors for Passive Terahertz Imaging

et al. 2018

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We report on the investigation of titanium nitride (TiN) thin films deposited via atomic layer deposition (ALD) for microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKID). Using our in-house ALD process, we have grown a sequence of TiN thin films (thickness 15, 30, 60 nm). The films have been characterised in terms of superconducting transition temperature , sheet resistance and microstructure. We have fabricated test resonator structures and characterised them at a temperature of 300 mK. At 350 GHz, we report an optical noise equivalent power , which is promising for passive terahertz imaging applications.

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Photon-Noise Limited Performance in Aluminum LEKIDs

Abstract: International audienc

Cited by 26 publications

References 7 publications

Maturity of lumped element kinetic inductance detectors for space-borne instruments in the range between 80 and 180 GHz

Maturity of lumped element kinetic inductance detectors for space-borne instruments in the range between 80 and 180 GHz

The non-equilibrium response of a superconductor to pair-breaking radiation measured over a broad frequency band

Design and Characterisation of Titanium Nitride Subarrays of Kinetic Inductance Detectors for Passive Terahertz Imaging

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