Abstract: The photon count rate (PCR) of superconducting single-photon detectors made of MoxSi1−x films shaped as a 2-μm-wide strip and a 115-nm-wide meander strip line is studied experimentally as a function of the dc biasing current at different values of the perpendicular magnetic field. For the wide strip, a crossover current Icross is observed, below which the PCR increases with an increasing magnetic field and above which it decreases. This behavior contrasts with the narrow MoxSi1−x meander, for which no crossover current is observed, thus suggesting different photon-detection mechanisms in the wide and narrow strips. Namely, we argue that in the wide strip the absorbed photon destroys superconductivity locally via the vortex-antivortex mechanism for the emergence of resistance, while in the narrow meander superconductivity is destroyed across the whole strip line, forming a hot belt. Accordingly, the different photon-detection mechanisms associated with vortices and the hot belt determine the qualitative difference in the dependence of the PCR on the magnetic field.

Abstract: The topic of superconductivity in strongly disordered materials has attracted significant attention. These materials appear to be rather promising for fabrication of various nanoscale devices such as bolometers and transition edge sensors of electromagnetic radiation. The vividly debated subject of intrinsic spatial inhomogeneity responsible for the non-Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer relation between the superconducting gap and the pairing potential is crucial both for understanding the fundamental issues of superconductivity in highly disordered superconductors, and for the operation of corresponding nanoelectronic devices. Here we report an experimental study of the electron transport properties of narrow NbN nanowires with effective cross sections of the order of the debated inhomogeneity scales. The temperature dependence of the critical current follows the textbook Ginzburg-Landau prediction for the quasi-one-dimensional superconducting channel I c approximately (1-T/T c)(3/2). We find that conventional models based on the the phase slip mechanism provide reasonable fits for the shape of R(T) transitions. Better agreement with R(T) data can be achieved assuming the existence of short 'weak links' with slightly reduced local critical temperature T c. Hence, one may conclude that an 'exotic' intrinsic electronic inhomogeneity either does not exist in our structures, or, if it does exist, it does not affect their resistive state properties, or does not provide any specific impact distinguishable from conventional weak links.

Abstract: We report our study of detection efficiency (DE) saturation in wavelength range 400 – 1550 nm for the NbN Superconducting Microstrip Single-Photon Detectors (SMSPD) featuring the strip width up to 3 μm. We observe an expected decrease of the $DE$ saturation plateau with the increase of photon wavelength and decrease of film sheet resistance. At 1.7 K temperature DE saturation can be clearly observed at 1550 nm wavelength in strip with the width up to 2 μm when sheet resistance of the film is above 630Ω/sq. In such strips the length of the saturation plateau almost does not depend on the strip width. We used these films to make meander-shaped detectors with the light sensitive area from 20×20μm2 to a circle 50 μm in diameter. In the latter case, the detector with the strip width of 0.49 μm demonstrates saturation of DE up to 1064 nm wavelength. Although DE at 1310 and 1550 nm is not saturated, it is as high as 60%. The response time is limited by the kinetic inductance and equals to 20 ns(by 1/e decay), timing jitter is 44 ps. When coupled to multi-mode fibre large-area meanders demonstrate significantly higher dark count rate which we attribute to thermal background photons, thus advanced filtering technique would be required for practical applications.