Dissertation
Low-dimensional superconductivity for single-photon detection in strong magnetic fields
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Drexel University
17 Dec 2020
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/00001405
Abstract
Superconducting nanowire detectors are a very prominent technology in fields that require single-photon detection with very high efficiency, such as quantum computing and communication or nanophotonics. Their high detection rates and unsurpassed timing precision would also make them ideal candidates for detector technology in other fields, such as nuclear and high energy physics. Typical collider experiments, however, operate in much more extreme conditions than most quantum optics setups. One of the main roadblocks for transforming superconducting nanowire photon detectors into superconducting nanowire particle detectors was the question of their performance in strong magnetic fields. In this work, I present the results of developing a novel thin film deposition method called Ion Beam Assisted Sputtering, which allowed me to grow superconducting Niobium Nitride films with upper critical fields as high as 32 T and study their microstructural and electromagnetic properties. As the nanowires are detectors with extremely small sizes, I also explore the nature of the suppression of the superconducting state in ultra-thin films. I propose two possible explanations for this phenomenon, one based on confinement of the BCS condensate, and the other on weak localization and competition between two strongly correlated electronic phases. Finally, I use this technology to fabricate superconducting nanowire single photon detectors capable of detection in fields as high as 5 T, currently the highest field at which nanowire detectors are known to operate. This result demonstrates the potential viability of the technology for nuclear and high energy physics, and is an important stepping stone to developing novel particle detectors.
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Details
- Title
- Low-dimensional superconductivity for single-photon detection in strong magnetic fields
- Creators
- Tomas Polakovic
- Contributors
- Goran Tripun Karapetrov (Advisor)Valentyn Novosad (Advisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Number of pages
- ix, 94 pages
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- College of Arts and Sciences; Physics; Drexel University
- Other Identifier
- 991014833549604721