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Superconducting Devices in Quantum Optics pp 31–60Cite as

Superconducting Transition Edge Sensors for Quantum Optics

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Part of the book series: Quantum Science and Technology ((QST))

Abstract

High efficiency single-photon detectors allow novel measurements in quantum information processing and quantum photonic systems. The photon-number resolving transition edge sensor (TES) is known for its near-unity detection efficiency and has been used in a number of landmark quantum optics experiments. We review the operating principle of the optical superconducting TES, its use for quantum optics and quantum information processing and review its recent implementation in integrated photonic platforms.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    We refer detectors with no photon-number-resolving capability as ‘click/no-click’ detectors, i.e. the detector cannot discriminate between the absorption of one or more photons.

  2. 2.

    Note that overall detection efficiency is a product of all optical losses in transferring the photons from where they are generated to where they are detected and the detector’s detection efficiency (see Sect. 1.1.1).

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Quantum Information Science Initiative (QISI) and the NIST ‘Innovations in Measurement Science’ Program. The NIST authors thank all collaborators who enabled the joint experiments summarized in this chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Standards and Technology, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO, 80305, USA

    Thomas Gerrits, Adriana Lita, Brice Calkins & Sae Woo Nam

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  1. Thomas Gerrits
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  2. Adriana Lita
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  3. Brice Calkins
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Correspondence to Thomas Gerrits .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Engineering, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Robert H. Hadfield

  2. Microtechnology and Nanoscience, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden

    Göran Johansson

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Gerrits, T., Lita, A., Calkins, B., Nam, S.W. (2016). Superconducting Transition Edge Sensors for Quantum Optics. In: Hadfield, R., Johansson, G. (eds) Superconducting Devices in Quantum Optics. Quantum Science and Technology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24091-6_2

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