From Device to Dynamics: An Iterative Architectural Framework for High-Performance Single-Photon Detection at Room Temperature

TL;DR

This paper introduces the ESPD framework, transforming photon detection into an iterative quantum information processing task, enabling high-performance room-temperature detection without relying on cryogenic superconducting detectors.

Contribution

It presents a novel architectural approach that shifts from device-centric to process-centric optimization, allowing performance improvements through structural design rather than material changes.

Findings

Convergence to high-performance detection states demonstrated through simulations.

Framework enables performance enhancement starting from low-performance detectors.

Provides a theoretical foundation for scalable, room-temperature quantum detection architectures.

Abstract

Photon detection is a cornerstone of quantum technology, traditionally regarded as a static device-level operation constrained by the intrinsic physical properties of single-photon detectors (SPDs). Consequently, high-performance detection has been heavily reliant on superconducting technologies, whose requirement for cryogenic temperatures imposes significant infrastructure burdens and limits scalable deployment. To circumvent these constraints, we propose the Enhanced Single-Photon Detection (ESPD) framework, which shifts the photon-detection paradigm from device-centric optimization to an integrated quantum-information-processing (QIP) task. By incorporating state preparation, controlled operations, projective measurements, and multi-copy decision analysis, we establish a nonlinear dynamical model that reformulates detection as an iteratively enhanced process. This architecture enables systematic performance upgrades through structural design rather than material modification, allowing high-performance detection with exclusively room-temperature hardware. Through analytical approximations, Monte Carlo analysis, and numerical simulations, we show that the ESPD dynamics converge to a high-performance basin of attraction even when initialized by low-performance SPDs. While physical realization requires further component integration efforts, this work establishes a rigorous theoretical foundation for enhancing detection via architectural QIP principles. It provides not only a blueprint for next-generation room-temperature photon detection but also a general methodology for transcending device-level constraints in broader quantum technologies.