Superconducting MoN thin films prepared by DC reactive magnetron sputtering for nanowire single-photon detectors

TL;DR

This paper investigates the deposition of molybdenum nitride (MoN) thin films via DC reactive magnetron sputtering and demonstrates their application in high-efficiency nanowire single-photon detectors at telecom wavelengths.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of how deposition conditions affect MoN film properties and showcases their use in superconducting single-photon detectors with saturated efficiency.

Findings

MoN films can be deposited with controlled superconducting properties.

5 nm MoN films achieve saturated detection efficiency at 1550 nm.

MoN is promising for low-temperature superconducting photon detection applications.

Abstract

We present a comprehensive study of molybdenum nitride (MoN) thin film deposition using direct current (DC) reactive magnetron sputtering. We have investigated the effect of various deposition conditions on the superconducting and electrical properties of the films. Furthermore, we have shown that meander-shaped single-photon detectors made from 5 nm MoN films have saturated quantum detection efficiency at the telecom wavelength of 1550 nm. Our results indicate that MoN may be a material of interest for practical applications of low-temperature superconductors, including single-photon detectors and transition-edge sensors.