High-efficiency polarization-insensitive superconducting nanowire single photon detector

Zhang Wen-Ying; Hu Peng; Xiao You; Li Hao; You Li-Xing

doi:10.7498/aps.70.20210486

Abstract

Superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD) has been widely used in many fields such as quantum communication due to its extremely high detection efficiency, low dark count rate, high count rate, and low timing jitter. Compared with conventional single-photon detectors with planar structure, SNSPD is typically made a periodical meandering structure consisting of parallel straight nanowires. However, owing to its unique linear structure, the detection efficiency of SNSPD is dependent on the polarization state of incident light, thus limiting SNSPD’s applications in unconventional fiber links or other incoherent light detection. In this paper, a polarization-insensitive SNSPD with high detection efficiency is proposed based on the traditional meandering nanowire structure. A thin silicon film with a high refractive index is introduced as a cladding layer of nanowires to reduce the dielectric mismatch between the nanowire and its surroundings, thereby improving the optical absorption efficiency of nanowires to the transverse-magnetic (TM) polarized incident light. The cladding layer is designed as a sinusoidal-shaped grating structure to minimize the difference in optical absorption efficiency between the transverse electric (TE) polarized incident light and the TM polarized incident light in a wide wavelength range. In addition, the twin-layer nanowire structure and the dielectric mirror are used to improve the optical absorption efficiency of the device. Our simulation results show that with the optimal parameters, the optical absorption efficiency of nanowires to both of the TE polarized incident light and TM polarized incident light has a maximum of over 90% at 1550 nm, and the corresponding polarization extinction ratio is less than 1.22. The fabricated device possesses a maximum detection efficiency of 87% at 1605 nm and a polarization extinction ratio of 1.06. The measured detection efficiency exceeds 50% with a polarization extinction ratio less than 1.2 in a wavelength range from 1505 nm to 1630 nm. This work provides a reference for high-efficiency polarization-insensitive SNSPD in the future.

Keywords:

superconducting nanowire single photon detector /
detection efficiency /
polarization-insensitive

Authors and contacts

1.
State Key Laboratory of Functional Materials for Informatics, Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050, China
2.
Center for Excellence in Superconducting Electronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050, China
3.
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100039, China
4.
Key Laboratory of Space Active Opto-electronics Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050, China

Corresponding author: Li Hao, lihao@mail.sim.ac.cn

Funds: Project supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2017YFA0304000), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 61971408, 61827823), the Science and Technology Major Project of Shanghai, China (Grant No. 2019SHZDZX01), the Shanghai Rising-Star Program, China (Grant No. 20QA1410900), the Youth Innovation Promotion Association, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. 2020241), and the Open Project of Key Laboratory of Space Active Optical-electro Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

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References

[1]	Engel A, Renema J J, Il’in K, Semenov A 2015 Supercond. Sci. Technol. 28 114003 Google Scholar
[2]	Miki S, Fujiwara M, Sasaki M, Baek B, Miller A J, Hadfield R H, Nam S W, Wang Z 2008 Appl. Phys. Lett. 92 061116 Google Scholar
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Cited By

图 1 (a)采用Si补偿层和正弦形光栅结构的SNSPD横截面示意图, 双层纳米线结构被制备在DBR上; (b)双层纳米线SNSPD光吸收效率随波长变化的仿真结果, 实线代表只叠加Si补偿层的SNSPD, 虚线代表裸纳米线SNSPD

Figure 1. (a) Cross-sectional schematic of the SNSPD with a Si compensation layer and a sinusoidal grating structure, the twin layer nanowire structure was prepared on a DBR; (b) simulated optical absorption as a function of the wavelength of the SNSPD with the twin-layer nanowires, solid lines denote the SNSPD only with a Si compensation layer, and dashed lines denote the SNSPD with bare nanowires.

DownLoad: Full-Size Img PowerPoint

图 2 引入正弦形光栅的偏振不敏感SNSPD光吸收效率随波长变化的仿真结果

Figure 2. Simulated optical absorption as a function of the wavelength of the polarization-insensitive SNSPD with the sinusoidal-shaped grating.

DownLoad: Full-Size Img PowerPoint

图 3 (a) SNSPD光敏面SEM图; (b)高度放大的双层纳米线SEM图; (c) SNSPD横截面TEM图, Si薄膜总厚度约为231 nm; (d)高度放大的双层纳米线TEM图, 过刻深度约6.5 nm; (e)高度放大的正弦形光栅TEM图, 光栅高度为22 nm

Figure 3. (a) SEM image of the active area of the SNSPD; (b) magnified SEM image of the the twin-layer nanowires; (c) TEM image of the cross-section of the SNSPD with a 231 nm-thick Si film; (d) magnified TEM image of the twin-layer nanowires with an over-etched depth of 6.5 nm; (e) magnified TEM image of the sinusoidal grating with a height of 22 nm.

DownLoad: Full-Size Img PowerPoint

图 4 SNSPD测试系统示意图

Figure 4. Schematic of the measurement system used to characterize the SNSPD.

DownLoad: Full-Size Img PowerPoint

图 5 (a)偏振不敏感SNSPD的SDE光谱响应, 插图显示了偏振不敏感SNSPD和裸纳米线SNSPD的PER光谱响应对比; (b)偏振不敏感SNSPD在1605 nm处探测效率随偏置电流变化的曲线

Figure 5. (a) Spectral responses of SDE for the polarization-insensitive SNSPD, the inset shows a comparison of the spectral responses of PER for the polarization-insensitive SNSPD and the SNSPD with bare nanowires; (b) system detection efficiency curves as a function of the bias current at 1605 nm for the polarization-insensitive SNSPD.

DownLoad: Full-Size Img PowerPoint

[1]	Engel A, Renema J J, Il’in K, Semenov A 2015 Supercond. Sci. Technol. 28 114003 Google Scholar
[2]	Miki S, Fujiwara M, Sasaki M, Baek B, Miller A J, Hadfield R H, Nam S W, Wang Z 2008 Appl. Phys. Lett. 92 061116 Google Scholar
[3]	张蜡宝, 康琳, 陈健, 赵清源, 郏涛, 许伟伟, 曹春海, 金飚兵, 吴培亨 2011 物理学报 60 038501 Google Scholar Zhang L B, Kang L, Chen J, Zhao Q Y, Jia T, Xu W W, Cao C H, Jin B B, Wu P H 2011 Acta Phys. Sin. 60 038501 Google Scholar
[4]	Hu P, Li H, You L X, Wang H Q, Xiao Y, Huang J, Yang X Y, Zhang W J, Wang Z, Xie X M 2020 Opt. Express 28 36884 Google Scholar
[5]	Zhang W J, Yang X Y, Li H, et al. 2018 Supercond. Sci. Technol. 31 035012 Google Scholar
[6]	Shibata H, Shimizu K, Takesue H, Tokura Y 2015 Opt. Lett. 40 3428 Google Scholar
[7]	Zadeh I E, Los J W N, Gourgues R B M, et al. 2017 APL Photonics 2 111301 Google Scholar
[8]	Zadeh I E, Los J W N, Gourgues R B M, et al. 2020 ACS Photonics 7 1780 Google Scholar
[9]	Zhang W J, Huang J, Zhang C J, et al. 2019 IEEE Trans. Appl. Supercond. 29 2200204 Google Scholar
[10]	Huang J, Zhang W J, You L X, Zhang C J, Lv C L, Wang Y, Liu X Y, Li H, Wang Z 2018 Supercond. Sci. Technol. 31 074001 Google Scholar
[11]	张青雅, 董文慧, 何根芳, 李铁夫, 刘建设, 陈炜 2014 物理学报 63 200303 Google Scholar Zhang Q Y, Dong W H, He G F, Li T F, Liu J S, Chen W 2014 Acta Phys. Sin. 63 200303 Google Scholar
[12]	Anant V, Kerman A J, Dauler E A, Yang J K W, Rosfjord K M, Berggren K K 2008 Opt. Express 16 10750 Google Scholar
[13]	Hadfield R H, Habif J L, Schlafer J, Schwall R E, Nam S W 2006 Appl. phys. Lett. 89 241129 Google Scholar
[14]	Xue L, Li Z L, Zhang L B, Zhai D S, Li Y Q, Zhang S, Li M, Kang L, Chen J, Wu P H, Xiong Y H 2016 Opt. Lett. 41 3848 Google Scholar
[15]	Li H, Chen S J, You L X, et al. 2016 Opt. Express 24 3535 Google Scholar
[16]	Shaw M D, Marsili F, Beyer A D, et al. 2015 Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO) California, USA, May 10–15, 2015 pJTh2A.68
[17]	刘锡民, 刘立人, 孙建锋, 郎海涛, 潘卫清, 赵栋 2005 物理学报 54 5149 Google Scholar Liu X M, Liu L R, Sun J F, Lang H T, Pan W Q, Zhao D 2005 Acta Phys. Sin. 54 5149 Google Scholar
[18]	Zhou H, He Y H, You L X, Chen S J, Zhang W J, Wu J J, Wang Z, Xie X M 2015 Opt. Express 23 14603 Google Scholar
[19]	Dorenbos S N, Reiger E M, Akopian N, Perinetti U, Zwiller V, Zijlstra T, Klapwijk T M 2008 Appl. Phys. Lett. 93 161102 Google Scholar
[20]	Huang J, Zhang W J, You L X, et al. 2017 Supercond. Sci. Technol. 30 074004 Google Scholar
[21]	Verma V B, Marsili F, Harrington S, Lita A E, Mirin R P, Nam S W 2012 Appl. Phys. Lett. 101 251114 Google Scholar
[22]	Chi X M, Zou K, Gu C, et al. 2018 Opt. Lett. 43 5017 Google Scholar
[23]	Meng, Y, Zou K, Hu Nan, Xu L, Lan X J, Steinhauer S, Gyger S, Zwiller V, Hu X L 2020 arXiv: 2012.06730v1[quant-ph]
[24]	Xu R Y, Z F, Qin D F, et al. 2017 J. Lightwave Technol. 35 4707 Google Scholar
[25]	张曦 2012 硕士学位论文 (武汉: 华中科技大学) Zhang X 2012 M. S. Thesis (Wuhan: Huazhong University of Science and Technology) (in Chinese)
[26]	马佑桥, 周骏, 孙铁囤, 邸明东, 丁海芳 2010 太阳能学报 31 1353 Ma Y Q, Zhou J, Sun T T, Di M D, Ding H F 2010 Acta Energiae Solaris Sinica 31 1353
[27]	Li H, Zhang W J, You L X, et al. 2014 IEEE J. Sel. Top. Quantum Electron. 20 198 Google Scholar

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