Second generation readout for large format photon counting microwave kinetic inductance detectors

Fruitwala, Neelay; Strader, Paschal; Zmuda, T.; Treptow, K.; Wilcer, Neal; Stoughton, Chris; Walter, Alex; Zobrist, Nicholas; Collura, G.; Lipartito, Isabel; Bailey, John I.; Mazin, Benjamin A.

doi:10.1063/5.0029457

Cited by 21 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Since the number of quasiparticles generated is proportional to the energy of the incident photon, MKIDs have an inherent energy resolution without the use of filters or gratings (Day et al 2003;Mazin et al 2012;Szypryt et al 2017). Additionally, each resonator is sampled at a rate of 1 MHz, yielding a microsecond timing resolution (Fruitwala et al 2020).…”

Section: Basic Processingmentioning

confidence: 99%

SCExAO/MEC and CHARIS Discovery of a Low-mass, 6 au Separation Companion to HIP 109427 Using Stochastic Speckle Discrimination and High-contrast Spectroscopy*

Steiger

Currie

Brandt

et al. 2021

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We report the direct imaging discovery of a low-mass companion to the nearby accelerating A star, HIP 109427, with the Subaru Coronagraphic Extreme Adaptive Optics (SCExAO) instrument coupled with the Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detector Exoplanet Camera (MEC) and CHARIS integral field spectrograph. CHARIS data reduced with reference star point spread function (PSF) subtraction yield 1.1-2.4 μm spectra. MEC reveals the companion in Y and J band at a comparable signal-to-noise ratio using stochastic speckle discrimination, with no PSF subtraction techniques. Combined with complementary follow-up L p photometry from Keck/NIRC2, the SCExAO data favors a spectral type, effective temperature, and luminosity of M4-M5.5, 3000-3200 K, and

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Section: Basic Processingmentioning

confidence: 99%

SCExAO/MEC and CHARIS Discovery of a Low-mass, 6 au Separation Companion to HIP 109427 Using Stochastic Speckle Discrimination and High-contrast Spectroscopy*

Steiger

Currie

Brandt

et al. 2021

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“…This dead time is set by material properties of the MKID array and for MEC has a value of 10 μs. During this time, no additional photons are able to be recorded for that pixel to allow it time to return to its idle state (Fruitwala et al 2020).…”

Section: Utilizing Photon Arrival Time Information With Mecmentioning

confidence: 99%

Probing Photon Statistics in Adaptive Optics Images with SCExAO/MEC*

Steiger

Brandt

Guyon

et al. 2022

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We present an experimental study of photon statistics for high-contrast imaging with the Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detector (MKID) Exoplanet Camera (MEC) located behind the Subaru Coronagraphic Extreme Adaptive Optics System at the Subaru Telescope. We show that MEC measures the expected distributions for both on-axis companion intensity and off-axis intensity, which manifests as quasi-static speckles in the image plane and currently limits high-contrast imaging performance. These statistics can be probed by any MEC observation due to the photon-counting capabilities of MKID detectors. Photon arrival time statistics can also be used to directly distinguish companions from speckles using a post-processing technique called Stochastic Speckle Discrimination (SSD). Here, we give an overview of the SSD technique and highlight the first demonstration of SSD on an extended source—the protoplanetary disk AB Aurigae. We then present simulations that provide an in-depth exploration as to the current limitations of an extension of the SSD technique called Photon-Counting SSD (PCSSD) to provide a path forward for transitioning PCSSD from simulations to on-sky results. We end with a discussion of how to further improve the efficacy of such arrival-time-based post-processing techniques applicable to both MKIDs, as well as other high-speed astronomical cameras.

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“…These de tectors are designed for the 800 to 2,000 nm wavelength range, and at 1 µm the best re solving powers achieved with this material were around 7. In practice, though, the excess phase noise in the readout system that these instruments use lowers the resolving power to ∼5 [128]. Work is currently being done to correct this issue with the next readout genera tion.…”

Section: Platinum Silicidementioning

confidence: 99%

Improving the Resolving Power of Ultraviolet to Near-Infrared Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors

Zobrist¹

2022

Springer Theses

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dark matter searches to biological imaging and astronomy. The performance of these de tectors often limits the achievable science goals for an application, so improvements to detector technologies can be transformative. This dissertation focuses on these detector enhancements, emphasizing the requirements for one particular application, exoplanet di rect imaging. However, the work done here remains broadly applicable to fields needing highly sensitive sensors in this wavelength range.Finding and studying the properties of exoplanets orbiting distant stars can tell us much about solar system dynamics and the formation of our own solar system. With sufficiently precise measurements we might also discover the presence of water or even biological processes on these planets. To achieve this goal, we need astronomical instrumentation ca pable of separating an exoplanet's light from its host star by directly imaging it. For many exoplanets, though, we receive at our telescope only roughly one photon for every billion from the star. Even worse, these two light sources often partially overlap because of the relative closeness of exoplanets to their stars and the diffraction limit set by the finite size xi of our telescope optics. Therefore, the extreme contrast ratio between the brightness of the star and planet sets the performance requirements for this kind of instrument.Carrying out this measurement with the traditional semiconductor based sensors can be difficult. They detect the intensity of light at each pixel and introduce excess noise into the system. However, superconducting sensors avoid this limitation because of their ex tra sensitivity. Each individual incident photon can be resolved making them essentially perfect photon counting detectors, which enables the detection of exoplanets with more challenging contrast ratios than detectable with conventional detectors. The system noise in a superconducting sensor, instead, determines how accurately the photon energy can be measured through the size of the detector response. Because of this extra energy measure ment capability these detectors do not need the complicated optical systems typically used to measure an exoplanet's atmospheric spectrum. The accuracy at which we can resolve these planetary spectra determines how much we can learn about a planet and, as such, is the principal metric for the performance of these devices.The Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detector (MKID) is unique among other supercon ducting technologies because it allows for the simple readout of tens to hundreds of thou sands of pixels, which is a requirement for when the exact location of an exoplanet is un known. This dissertation focuses on improving the spectral resolving power of MKIDs to make them the superior option for ultraviolet to nearinfrared measurements and, in partic ular, for exoplanet direct imaging. Chapters 1 and 2 discuss the significance of MKIDs as astronomical detectors and the relevant physics needed to understand their operation. In the following chapters, four sepa...

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Second generation readout for large format photon counting microwave kinetic inductance detectors

Cited by 21 publications

References 18 publications

SCExAO/MEC and CHARIS Discovery of a Low-mass, 6 au Separation Companion to HIP 109427 Using Stochastic Speckle Discrimination and High-contrast Spectroscopy*

SCExAO/MEC and CHARIS Discovery of a Low-mass, 6 au Separation Companion to HIP 109427 Using Stochastic Speckle Discrimination and High-contrast Spectroscopy*

Probing Photon Statistics in Adaptive Optics Images with SCExAO/MEC*

Improving the Resolving Power of Ultraviolet to Near-Infrared Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors

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