Photon counting LIDAR at 2.3µm wavelength with superconducting nanowires

Opt Express. 2019 Dec 23;27(26):38147-38158. doi: 10.1364/OE.27.038147.

Abstract

In this work, we show a proof-of-principle benchtop single-photon light detection and ranging (LIDAR) depth imager at 2.3µm, utilizing superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs). We fabricate and fiber-couple SNSPDs to exhibit enhanced photon counting performance in the mid-infrared. We present characterization results using an optical parametric oscillator source and deploy these detectors in a scanning LIDAR setup at 2.3µm wavelength. This demonstrates the viability of these detectors for future free-space photon counting applications in the mid-infrared where atmospheric absorption and background solar flux are low.