Recent advances in solid-state single photon detectors

Abstract

This paper reviews recent advances in the detection of single photons at visible and near-infrared wavelengths, focusing on detectors based on superconducting and semiconducting technologies. * Contribution of NIST, an agency of the U.S. government, not subject to copyright. OCIS codes: (230.5160) Photodetectors; (270.5570) Quantum detectors IntroductionDetectors that are sensitive to single photons have applications in a wide variety of fields, such as biomedical imaging, astronomy, quantum cryptography, and quantum computing. Here we review various superconducting and semiconducting technologies for the detection of single photons, including avalanche photodiodes, visible light photon counters, quantum-dot-gated field-effect transistors, superconducting single photon detectors, and superconducting transition-edge sensors. Although all of the detectors discussed here are single-photon sensitive, some have the additional ability to resolve the number of photons in a pulse of light.Different applications have varying detector requirements. Quantum key distribution (QKD), for example, generally requires detectors with high efficiency and low dark count rate. If the QKD system is fiber-based, the detectors must operate at the telecommunication wavelengths, 1310 nm and 1550 nm. Energy-resolving detectors can also be used to verify that the source used creates the expected distribution of photon-number, an important determination because the ultimate security of many QKD systems rests on the transmission of single photons. Linear-optics quantum computing requires very high detection efficiency, low dark count rate, and photon-number-resolving detectors.