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Progress Towards High-Sensitivity Arrays of Detectors of Sub-mm Radiation using Superconducting Tunnel Junctions with Radio-Frequency Single-Electron Transistors

Thomas R. Stevenson, W.‐T. Hsieh, Muxian Li, Carl M. Stahle, Edward J. Wollack, Robert J. Schoelkopf, Carolyn A. Krebs

Published Jan 1, 2002• 0 citations
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Abstract

The science drivers for the SPIRIT/SPECS missions demand sensitive, fast, compact, low-power, large-format detector arrays for high resolution imaging and spectroscopy in the far infrared and submillimeter. Detector arrays with 10,000 pixels and sensitivity less than 10(exp 20)-20 W/Hz(exp 20)0.5 are needed. Antenna-coupled superconducting tunnel junction detectors with integrated rf single-electron transistor readout amplifiers have the potential for achieving this high level of sensitivity, and can take advantage of an rf multiplexing technique when forming arrays. The device consists of an antenna structure to couple radiation into a small superconducting volume and cause quasiparticle excitations, and a single-electron transistor to measure currents through tunnel junction contacts to the absorber volume. We will describe optimization of device parameters, and recent results on fabrication techniques for producing devices with high yield for detector arrays. We will also present modeling of expected saturation power levels, antenna coupling, and rf multiplexing schemes.

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We have measured single-electron tunneling transistors with superconducting islands and conclude that they may be used as ultrasensitive detectors of microwave radiation for frequencies /spl ges/80 GHz. These devices contain a small superconducting Al island that is weakly coupled to a bias circuit through two small-capacitance tunnel junctions and a capacitive gate. At low bias voltages and temperatures, a single quasiparticle may only be introduced to the island through photon-assisted tunneling. Once this occurs, the quasiparticle is trapped on the island for /spl sim/1 /spl mu/s because it takes a relatively long time for this specific quasiparticle to tunnel off. While it is trapped, charge is transported through the system two electrons at a time. Since the photon-assisted transition merely switches the detector current on, this device is not limited to one electron tunneled through the system per absorbed photon. Measurements indicate that at least 100 electrons can tunnel for every absorbed photon, which corresponds to a noise-equivalent power of 3/spl times/10/sup -20/ W//spl radic/Hz at 80 GHz if the current is measured with a commercial current amplifier.>

IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity•Jun 1, 1995•7 citations
The science drivers for the SPIRIT/SPECS missions demand sensitive, fast, compact, low-power, large-format detector arrays for high resolution imaging and spectroscopy in the far infrared and submillimeter. Detector arrays with 10,000 pixels and sensitivity less than 10(exp 20)-20 W/Hz(exp 20)0.5 are needed. Antenna-coupled superconducting tunnel junction detectors with integrated rf single-electron transistor readout amplifiers have the potential for achieving this high level of sensitivity, and can take advantage of an rf multiplexing technique when forming arrays. The device consists of an antenna structure to couple radiation into a small superconducting volume and cause quasiparticle excitations, and a single-electron transistor to measure currents through tunnel junction contacts to the absorber volume. We will describe optimization of device parameters, and recent results on fabrication techniques for producing devices with high yield for detector arrays. We will also present modeling of expected saturation power levels, antenna coupling, and rf multiplexing schemes.
For high resolution imaging and spectroscopy in the FIR and submillimeter, space observatories will demand sensitive, fast, compact, low-power detector arrays with 104 pixels and sensitivity less than 10(exp -20) W/Hz(sup 0.5). Antenna-coupled superconducting tunnel junctions with integrated rf single-electron transistor readout amplifiers have the potential for achieving this high level of sensitivity, and can take advantage of an rf multiplexing technique. The device consists of an antenna to couple radiation into a small superconducting volume and cause quasiparticle excitations, and a single-electron transistor to measure current through junctions contacting the absorber. We describe optimization of device parameters, and results on fabrication techniques for producing devices with high yield for detector arrays. We also present modeling of expected saturation power levels, antenna coupling, and rf multiplexing schemes.
Antenna-coupled superconducting tunnel junction detectors have the potential for photon-counting sensitivity at sub-mm wavelengths. The device consists of an antenna structure to couple radiation into a small superconducting volume and cause quasiparticle excitations, and a single-electron transistor to measure currents through tunnel junction contacts to the absorber volume. We will describe optimization of device parameters, and recent results on fabrication techniques for producing devices with high yield for detector arrays. We will also present modeling of expected saturation power levels, antenna coupling, and rf multiplexing schemes.
We report progress on using a new type of amplifier, the Radio-Frequency Single-Electron Transistor (RF-SET), to develop multi-channel sensor readout systems for fast and sensitive readout of high impedance cryogenic photodetectors such as Superconducting Tunnel Junctions and Single Quasiparticle Photon Counters. Although cryogenic, these detectors are desirable because of capabilities not other-wise attainable. However, high impedances and low output levels make low-noise, high-speed readouts challenging, and large format arrays would be facilitated by compact, low-power, on-chip integrated amplifiers. Well-suited for this application are RF-SETs, very high performance electrometers which use an rf readout technique to provide 100 MHz bandwidth. Small size, low power, and cryogenic operation allow direct integration with detectors, and using multiple rf carrier frequencies permits simultaneous readout of 20-50 amplifiers with a common electrical connection. We describe both the first 2-channel demonstration of this wavelength division multiplexing technique for RF-SETs, and Charge-Locked-Loop operation with 100 kHz of closed-loop bandwidth.
We are developing superconducting direct detectors for submillimeter astronomy that can in principle detect individual photons. These devices, Single Quasiparticle Photon Counter (SQPC), operate by measuring the quasiparticles generated when single Cooper-pairs are broken by absorption of a submillimeter photon. This photoconductive type of device could yield high quantum efficiency, large responsivity, microsecond response times, and sensitivities in the range of 10-20 Watts per root Hertz. The use of antenna coupling to a small absorber also suggests the potential for novel instrument designs and scalability to imaging or spectroscopic arrays. We will describe the device concept, recent results on fabrication and electrical characterization of these detectors, issues related to saturation and optimization of the device parameters. Finally, we have developed practical readout amplifiers for these high-impedance cryogenic detectors based on the Radio-Frequency Single-Electron Transistor (RF-SET). We will describe results of a demonstration of a transimpedance amplifier based on closed-loop operation of an RF-SET, and a demonstration of a wavelength-division multiplexing scheme for the RF-SET. These developments will be a key ingredient in scaling to large arrays of high-sensitivity detectors.
We discuss the design for a submillimeter-wave photometer, using a combination of superconducting and single-electron devices, which would have high quantum efficiency, very low noise-equivalent powers, and eventually even submicrosecond timing resolution. The absorption of above-gap photons occurs in a small strip of superconducting Al, whose normal-state resistance can be matched efficiently to an antenna of a higher gap (Nb) superconductor. The quasiparticles produced by photon absorption are then confined via Andreev reflection, and forced to tunnel through a small SIS tunnel junction. The tunneling time is much shorter than the known (>10 /spl mu/s) quasiparticle recombination time, so collection efficiency will be high. The device sensitivity would be limited by the small subgap current in the high-quality Al/AlO/sub x//Al tunnel junction at temperatures (100 mK) well below T/sub c/. Scaling based on the larger junctions used in X-ray detector applications suggests that the total dark current can be <0.1 pA, or of order 10/sup 5/ electrons/second, corresponding to an NEP of less than 10/sup -19/ W//spl radic/Hz at 500 microns (600 GHz). The photocurrent will be measured using a fast single-electron transistor (RF-SET), which allows a shot-noise-limited performance even for the very small currents delivered from this low capacitance and high impedance SIS junction. Results of initial fabrication and dc characterization of an integrated photodetector are also given.
We have measured single-electron tunneling transistors with superconducting islands and conclude that they may be used as ultrasensitive detectors of microwave radiation for frequencies /spl ges/80 GHz. These devices contain a small superconducting Al island that is weakly coupled to a bias circuit through two small-capacitance tunnel junctions and a capacitive gate. At low bias voltages and temperatures, a single quasiparticle may only be introduced to the island through photon-assisted tunneling. Once this occurs, the quasiparticle is trapped on the island for /spl sim/1 /spl mu/s because it takes a relatively long time for this specific quasiparticle to tunnel off. While it is trapped, charge is transported through the system two electrons at a time. Since the photon-assisted transition merely switches the detector current on, this device is not limited to one electron tunneled through the system per absorbed photon. Measurements indicate that at least 100 electrons can tunnel for every absorbed photon, which corresponds to a noise-equivalent power of 3/spl times/10/sup -20/ W//spl radic/Hz at 80 GHz if the current is measured with a commercial current amplifier.>