Superconducting microbridge single photon detectors with improved temporal response

Abstract

We report a single photon detector based on NbTiN microbridges, suitable for operation within telecommunication wavelengths. We observed an excellent signal-to-noise ratio of the readout signal while the corresponding jitter contributed by electrical noise was measured to be less than 10 ps. Routing the current through a parallel electrical connection to set the microbridge back to the superconducting state after photon absorption enabled us to overcome the hysteresis of the state transition. Our approach combines facile fabrication of fast microscale detectors with efficient current redistribution mechanism, enabling prospective applications in quantum photonics which requires accurate estimation of photon arrival events.