Absolute calibration of a single-photon avalanche detector using a bright triggered single-photon source based on an...

Area of Science:

• Quantum Optics
• Solid-State Physics
• Photonics

Background:

• Accurate calibration of single-photon detectors is crucial for quantum information science and metrology.
• Silicon single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) are widely used but require precise efficiency calibration.
• Existing calibration methods can be complex and may lack traceability to fundamental standards.

Purpose of the Study:

• To calibrate the absolute detection efficiency of a silicon SPAD operating in Geiger mode.
• To demonstrate the utility of an Indium Gallium Arsenide (InGaAs) quantum dot (QD) single-photon source for detector calibration.
• To establish a calibration method traceable to national standards for optical radiant flux.

Main Methods:

• Utilized an InGaAs quantum dot single-photon source emitting at 929.8 nm with a flux up to 2.55 × 10^6 photons/s.
• Characterized the single-photon purity with a second-order correlation function (g(2)(0)) between 0.14 and 0.24.
• Employed an analog low-noise reference detector, traceable to the national standard, for absolute flux measurement.

Main Results:

• The InGaAs QD source provided sufficient single-photon flux for accurate SPAD calibration.
• The measured SPAD detection efficiency remained constant across varying photon fluxes within measurement uncertainty.
• A weighted mean detection efficiency of 0.3263 ± 0.0022 was determined.

Conclusions:

• An InGaAs quantum dot single-photon source is a viable tool for absolute SPAD detection efficiency calibration.
• The developed method offers high precision and traceability for single-photon detector characterization.
• This work contributes to advancing the metrology of quantum optical measurements.