DE-102024133077-A1 - Photon detection device

DE102024133077A1DE 102024133077 A1DE102024133077 A1DE 102024133077A1DE-102024133077-A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a photon detection device 1 for detecting single photons and outputting a detection signal D, the photon detection device 1 comprising a housing 2, 2' with an interior 20, 20' in which a single-photon diode 3, 3', 3'' and an active cooling element 4, 4' are arranged, wherein a heat sink 21, 21' is provided for dissipating waste heat from the cooling element 4, 4', wherein the single-photon diode 3, 3', 3'' is arranged on a first side of the active cooling element 40 and the heat sink 21, 21' is arranged on a second side of the active cooling element 41, and the housing 2, 2' has an optical inlet element 5, 5', which allows a signal emanating from the environment of the photon detection device 1 to pass through to the inlet element 5, 5' The photon detection device 1 is formed in the interior of the housing 20, 20', and comprises a preprocessing unit 6, 6', 6'' connected to the single-photon diode 3, 3', 3'' for converting an analog signal output by the single-photon diode 3, 3', 3'' into an intermediate signal, and an evaluation unit 7 connected to the preprocessing unit 6 for generating the detection signal D from the intermediate signal of the preprocessing unit 6. The preprocessing unit 6 and the evaluation unit 7 are arranged in the interior of the housing 20, 20' of the photon detection device (1).

Inventors

Boudewijn Venema
Andreas Gornik
Jens Raacke

Assignees

duotec GmbH

Dates

Publication Date: 20260513
Application Date: 20241112

Claims (19)

Photon detection device (1) for detecting individual photons and outputting a detection signal (D) which includes as information a specification of times of detection events, wherein a detection event corresponds to the detection of a single photon, the photon detection device (1) comprising a detector housing (2, 2') with a housing interior (20, 20') in which a photon detector (3, 3', 3''), in particular an avalanche photodiode [SPAD], and an active cooling element (4, 4'), in particular a Peltier element, are arranged, wherein a heat sink (21, 21') is provided for dissipating waste heat from the cooling element (4, 4') to an environment of the detector housing, and the heat sink is arranged at least partially outside the housing interior (20, 20'), wherein the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') is located on a first side of the active cooling element (40) arranged and the heat sink (21, 21') is arranged on a second side of the active cooling element (41), and the detector housing (2, 2') has an optical entrance element (5, 5'), in particular comprising a glass material or an optical crystal material, which is configured to allow a photon incident on the entrance element (5, 5') from the environment of the photon detection device (1) into the interior of the housing (20, 20'), wherein the photon detection device (1) comprises a preprocessing unit (6) connected to the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') for converting an analog signal, in particular an analog pulse signal, output by the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') into an analog or digital intermediate signal, and optionally an evaluation unit (7) connected to the preprocessing unit (6) for generating the detection signal (D) from the comprising an analog or digital intermediate signal of the preprocessing unit (6), characterized in that, in addition to the photon detector, at least the preprocessing unit (6) is arranged in the housing interior (20, 20') of the detector housing, which is connected to the photon detector on the input side.
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 1 , characterized in that the preprocessing unit (6) is arranged on the first (cooling) side of the active cooling element (4).
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 1 or 2 , characterized in that the active cooling element (4, 4') comprises several active cooling element units (42a, b, 42'a), wherein in particular one of the active cooling element units (42a, b, 42'a) provides the first side of the active cooling element (40) and another of the active cooling element units (42a, b, 42'a) provides the second side of the active cooling element (41).
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 3 , characterized in that the active cooling element units (42a, b, 42'a) each have a heat dissipation side and a heat absorption side and wherein a first of the active cooling element units (42a, b, 42'a) is connected with its heat dissipation side to the heat absorption side of a second of the active cooling element units (42a, b, 42'a), wherein in particular the single-photon diode (3, 3', 3'') is arranged on the heat absorption side of the first active cooling element unit (42a, b, 42'a) and/or the heat dissipation side of the second active cooling element unit (42a, b, 42'a) has a larger surface area than the heat absorption side of the first active cooling element unit (42a, b, 42'a).
Photon detection device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the housing interior (20, 20') has a detection area cooled by the active cooling element (4, 4'), in particular thermally insulated from the rest of the housing interior (20, 20'), wherein at least the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') is arranged in the detection area.
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 5 , characterized in that the preprocessing unit (6) is arranged in the detection area of the housing interior (20, 20'), wherein in particular the evaluation unit (7) is arranged outside the detection area in the interior (20, 20') of the detector housing, in particular outside the detection area and outside the housing interior of the detector housing.
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 5 or 6 , characterized in that the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') is arranged on a first side of a first printed circuit board section (90a) of a printed circuit board arrangement, in particular a first printed circuit board section (90a) comprising ceramic, wherein a second side of the first printed circuit board section (90a) is arranged on the first side of the active cooling element (4, 4') and wherein in particular the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') and/or the preprocessing unit (6) is arranged on the first printed circuit board section (90a) of the printed circuit board arrangement, wherein preferably the first and second printed circuit board sections (90a, b) are thermally isolated from each other by at least one thermal insulation section (103) comprising a thermally insulating gas or a vacuum.
Photon detection device (1) according to Claim 5 or 6 , characterized in that the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') and/or the preprocessing unit (6) is arranged in direct thermal contact without an intermediate layer on a cold side of the active cooling element.
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 7 , characterized in that the first and second printed circuit board sections (90a, b) are thermally isolated from each other by at least one thermal insulation section (103) comprising a thermally insulating gas or a vacuum.
Photon detection device (1) according to one of the Claims 5 - 7 or 9 , characterized in that the detection area is limited by the first printed circuit board section (90a), by the entry element (5, 5') and by side walls, wherein in particular the detection area is gas-tightly insulated from the rest of the housing interior (20, 20').
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 10 , characterized in that the detection area is filled with a gas, in particular an inert gas and/or a dried gas, or comprises a vacuum.
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 10 or 11 , characterized in that the side walls of the detection area have a multi-layer arrangement to provide thermal and/or gas-tight insulation of the detection area from the environment of the photon detection device (1).
Photon detection device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the preprocessing unit (6) comprises at least one electronic component, in particular a preamplifier (60) and/or a comparator (63) and/or a temperature sensor. (Optionally, only the preamplifier, which receives the signal from the photon detector, and the photon detector are arranged within the detector housing.)
Photon detection device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the evaluation unit (7) comprises at least one electronic component, in particular at least one microprocessor and/or one FPGA for processing the output signal of the preprocessing unit into the detection signal.
Photon detection device (1) according Claim 14 , characterized in that the evaluation unit (7) is arranged outside the detector housing, wherein the preprocessing unit is connected to the evaluation unit (7) on the output side, in particular galvanically connected.
Photon detection device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the housing (2, 2') has at least one self-destruction device, in particular comprising a predetermined breaking point and a triggering device operatively connected with the predetermined breaking point, wherein the self-destruction device is configured and designed to destroy at least one of the components arranged in the housing (2, 2'), in particular the evaluation unit (7), of the photon detection device (1) when the housing (2, 2') of the photon detection device (1) is opened.
Photon detection device (1) according to one of the Claims 1 until 16 , characterized in that at least one further photon detector (3, 3', 3''), in particular a further avalanche photodiode [SPAD], is arranged in the detector housing (2, 2'), wherein the further photon detector is arranged on the first side of the active cooling element (4, 4'), furthermore an optical beam splitter (110) with one optical input and two optical outputs, wherein the optical input of the beam splitter (110) is arranged downstream of the optical inlet element (5, 5') in the photon direction, and wherein the first output of the beam splitter (110) is arranged optically upstream of the first photon detector (3) and the second output of the beam splitter (110) is arranged optically upstream of the further single-photon detector (3', 3''), and wherein the photon detection device (1) includes a further preprocessing unit (6) connected to the further photon detector (3', 3'') for converting a photon signal from the further photon detector (3', 3'') output analog signal into another intermediate signal, and the preprocessing unit (6) is connected to the evaluation unit (7) to generate another detection signal (D) from the further intermediate signal.
Method for detecting individual photons and outputting a detection signal (D), which as information includes a specification of the times of detection events, wherein a detection event corresponds to the detection of a single photon by a photon detector (3, 3', 3'') of a photon detection device (1), wherein the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') generates an analog (current) signal associated with the detection event and transmits this analog signal to a preprocessing unit (6), wherein the preprocessing unit (6) generates an analog or digital intermediate signal from the analog signal of the photon detector (3, 3', 3'') and transmits this intermediate signal to an evaluation unit (7), wherein the intermediate signal is processed by the evaluation unit (7) to uniquely assign information about the time of the detection event of the single photon to this detection event, characterized in that the preprocessing unit (6) and the single-photon diode (3, 3', 3'') by an active cooling element (4, 4'), in particular a common cooling element (4, 4') is cooled.
Decryption device for determining a quantum key for encrypting data, by detecting and processing individual photons, comprising a plurality of photon detection devices (1) according to one of the Claims 1 until 17 .

Description

The invention relates to a photon detection device for detecting single photons and outputting a detection signal, which includes as information a specification of the times of detection events, wherein a detection event corresponds to the detection of a single photon, the photon detection device comprising a detector housing with an interior in which a photon detector, in particular an avalanche single-photon diode, and an active cooling element, in particular a Peltier element, are arranged, wherein a heat sink is provided for dissipating waste heat from the cooling element to the environment of the detector housing, and the heat sink is arranged at least partially outside the interior of the housing, wherein the photon detector is arranged on a first side of the active cooling element and the heat sink is arranged on a second side of the active cooling element, and the detector housing has an optical entrance element, in particular comprising optical glass or an optical crystal material, which is designed to transmit a photon originating from the environment of the photon detection device to the entrance element. the housing interior is designed, wherein the photon detection device comprises a preprocessing unit connected to the photon detector for converting an analog signal output by the photon detector into an analog or digital intermediate signal and optionally an evaluation unit connected to the preprocessing unit for generating the detection signal from the digital signal. Optical detectors for detecting extremely low light intensities, especially single-photon detectors, are now used in many fields, for example in analytical applications in the life sciences, such as fluorescence and luminescence measurements, single-molecule spectroscopy, confocal microscopy, industrial applications like particle size determination, metrology, astronomical applications like LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and quantum applications such as quantum optics and quantum cryptography. A major problem with such single-photon detectors is suppressing dark count rates, particularly those caused by thermal effects, and minimizing the detection device's dead time. This dead time is typically caused by the need for very high gain to detect a single photon and the necessary signal processing in the downstream electronics. The present invention is based on the objective of providing a photon detection device which offers high photon detection efficiency with low dead time of the device, without increasing the manufacturing costs compared to conventional photon detection devices. This problem is solved at least partially by the present application with a photon detection device having the features of claim 1. According to this claim, the photon detection device according to the invention is designed for detecting individual photons and outputting a detection signal, which includes as information a specification of the times of detection events, wherein a detection event corresponds to the detection of a single photon, and comprises a detector housing with an interior in which a photon detector, in particular an avalanche single-photon diode, and an active cooling element, in particular a Peltier element, are arranged, wherein a heat sink is provided for dissipating waste heat from the cooling element to an environment of the detector housing, in particular the photon detection device, and the heat sink is arranged at least partially outside the interior of the housing, wherein the photon detector is arranged on a first side of the active cooling element and the heat sink is arranged on a second side of the active cooling element, and the detector housing includes an optical entrance element, in particular comprising an optical glass or an optical crystal material. The photon detection device is designed to allow a photon originating from the environment of the photon detection device and striking the entry element into the interior of the housing. The photon detection device comprises a preprocessing unit connected to the photon detector for converting an analog signal, in particular an analog pulse signal, output by the photon detector into an analog or digital intermediate signal, and optionally an evaluation unit connected to the preprocessing unit for generating the detection signal from the digital signal. The photon detection device according to the invention is characterized in that, in addition to the photon detector, at least the preprocessing unit is arranged in the interior of the detector housing and is connected to the photon detector at its input. The photon detection device according to the invention is based on the idea of arranging at least the preprocessing unit close to the photon detector connected to it at the input side within the detector housing, in order to eliminate the necessary galvanic connections between the photon detector and the subsequent components. to keep the output signals of the photon