Electro thermal simulation of superconducting nanowire avalanche photodetectors

TL;DR

This paper presents an electro-thermal model for NbN superconducting nanowire avalanche photodetectors, accurately simulating their electrical and thermal behavior and aligning well with experimental data.

Contribution

The study introduces a coupled electrical-thermal simulation model for SNAPs, based on physical constants derived from experiments, enhancing understanding of device dynamics.

Findings

Model predictions match experimental results quantitatively

Simulates time evolution of resistance, temperature, and current

Provides insights into the avalanche process in SNAPs

Abstract

We developed an electro thermal model of NbN superconducting nanowire avalanche photodetectors (SNAPs) on sapphire substrates. SNAPs are single photon detectors consisting of the parallel connection of N superconducting nanowires. We extrapolated the physical constants of the model from experimental data and we simulated the time evolution of the device resistance, temperature and current by solving two coupled electrical and thermal differential equations describing the nanowires. The predictions of the model were in good quantitative agreement with the experimental results.