Efficient and continuous microwave photoconversion in hybrid cavity-semiconductor nanowire double quantum dot diodes

Area of Science:

• Quantum Information Science
• Semiconductor Nanotechnology
• Microwave Photonics

Background:

• Optical photodetectors convert photons to electrical current, crucial for quantum technologies.
• Existing semiconductor photodiodes lack sensitivity for low-energy microwave photons.
• A gap exists for efficient, continuous microwave photon detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To address the lack of sensitive microwave photon detectors.
• To demonstrate efficient conversion of microwave photons to electrical current.
• To develop a novel photodetector for quantum information applications.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a high-quality semiconducting nanowire double quantum dot.
• Resonantly coupled the double quantum dot to a cavity.
• Engineered a photodiode device for photon-to-electron conversion.

Main Results:

• Achieved efficient and continuous conversion of microwave photons to electrical current.
• Demonstrated a single electron tunneling mechanism per absorbed photon.
• Reached a photon-to-electron conversion efficiency of 6%.

Conclusions:

• The developed nanowire double quantum dot photodiode effectively detects microwave photons.
• This technology bridges the gap in sensitive microwave photon detection.
• Enables advancements in quantum information technologies requiring microwave regime sensitivity.