Kinetic inductance detector explained

The kinetic inductance detector (KID) — also known as a microwave kinetic inductance detector (MKID) — is a type of superconducting photon detector capable of counting single photons whilst simultaneously measuring their energy and arrival time to high precision. They were first developed by scientists at the California Institute of Technology and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 2003.[1] These devices operate at cryogenic temperatures, typically below 1 kelvin. They are being developed for high-sensitivity astronomical detection for frequencies ranging from the far-infrared to X-rays.

Principle of operation

Photons incident on a strip of superconducting material break Cooper pairs and create excess quasiparticles. The kinetic inductance of the superconducting strip is inversely proportional to the density of Cooper pairs, and thus the kinetic inductance increases upon photon absorption. This inductance is combined with a capacitor to form a microwave resonator whose resonant frequency changes with the absorption of photons. This resonator-based readout is useful for developing large-format detector arrays, as each KID can be addressed by a single microwave tone and many detectors can be measured using a single broadband microwave channel, a technique known as frequency-division multiplexing.

Applications

KIDs are being developed for a range of astronomy applications, including millimeter and submillimeter wavelength detectionat the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory,[2] the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) on the Llano de Chajnantor Observatory,[3] the CCAT Observatory, the Large Millimeter Telescope, and the IRAM 30-m telescope.[4] They are also being developed for optical and near-infrared detection at the Palomar Observatory.[5] KIDs have also flown on two balloon-borne telescopes, OLIMPO[6] in 2018 and BLAST-TNG[7] in 2020. KIDs have also gained popularity as a more compact, lower cost, and less complex alternative to transition edge sensors.[8]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Day . P. K. . LeDuc . H. G. . Mazin . B. A. . Vayonakis . A. . Zmuidzinas . J. . 2003 . A broadband superconducting detector suitable for use in large arrays . Nature . 425 . 6960. 817–821 . 10.1038/nature02037 . 2003Natur.425..817D . 14574407. 4414046 .
  2. Book: 10.1117/12.857751. MUSIC for sub/Millimeter astrophysics. Millimeter, Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy V. 7741. 77410F. 2010. Maloney. Philip R.. Czakon. Nicole G.. Day. Peter K.. Downes. Thomas P.. Duan. Ran. Gao. Jiansong. Glenn. Jason. Golwala. Sunil R.. Hollister. Matt I.. Leduc. Henry G.. Mazin. Benjamin A.. McHugh. Sean G.. Noroozian. Omid. Nguyen. Hien T.. Sayers. Jack. Schlaerth. James A.. Siegel. Seth. Vaillancourt. John E.. Vayonakis. Anastasios. Wilson. Philip. Zmuidzinas. Jonas. Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE) . 9780819482310 . 20865654 . Wayne S. . Jonas . Holland . Zmuidzinas . https://authors.library.caltech.edu/71659/1/77410F_1.pdf.
  3. 2010stt..conf..262H. Development of a MKID Camera for APEX. Twenty-First International Symposium on Space Terahertz Technology. 262. Heyminck. S.. Klein. B.. Güsten. R.. Kasemann. C.. Baryshev. A.. Baselmans. J.. Yates. S.. Klapwijk. T. M.. 2010.
  4. Monfardini . A. . etal . 2011 . A dual-band millimeter-wave kinetic inductance camera for the IRAM 30 m telescope . The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series . 194 . 2. 24 . 10.1088/0067-0049/194/2/24 . 1102.0870 . 2011ApJS..194...24M . 59407170 .
  5. Mazin . B. A. . O'Brien . K. . McHugh . S. . Bumble . B. . Moore . D. . Golwala . S. . Zmuidzinas . J. . Ian S. . Suzanne K. . Hideki . McLean . Ramsay . Takami . 2010 . ARCONS: a highly multiplexed superconducting optical to near-IR camera . Proc. SPIE . 7735 . 773518 . 10.1117/12.856440 . 1007.0752 . Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy III . 2010SPIE.7735E..18M . 38654668 .
  6. Masi . S. . de Bernardis . P. . Paiella . A. . Piacentini . F. . Lamagna . L. . Coppolecchia . A. . Ade . P.A.R. . Battistelli . E.S. . Castellano . M.G. . Colantoni . I. . Columbro . F. . D'Alessandro . G. . Petris . M. De . Gordon . S. . Magneville . C. . 2019-07-01 . Kinetic Inductance Detectors for the OLIMPO experiment: in-flight operation and performance . Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics . 2019 . 07 . 003–003 . 10.1088/1475-7516/2019/07/003 . 1475-7516. 1902.08993 .
  7. Web site: Science – BLAST The Experiment . 2023-12-17 . sites.northwestern.edu.
  8. Zmuidzinas . Jonas . Superconducting Microresonators: Physics and Applications . Annual Review of Condensed Matter Physics . March 2012 . 3 . 169–214 . 10.1146/annurev-conmatphys-020911-125022 . 23 July 2020.

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