Characterization of a tantalum-aluminum-based kinetic inductance detector for far-infrared space applications
Future far-infrared space observatories equipped with cryogenic telescopes require ultra-sensitive detectors to enable measurements limited only by the sky background. We present the design, fabrication, and characterization of a superconducting kinetic inductance detector (KID) at 4.3 THz. The lumped-element KID comprises a tantalum interdigitated capacitor and a 100-nm-wide aluminum-line inductor connected in parallel. The inductor acts also as a low-volume absorber. We achieved photon-noise-limited performance with a noise equivalent power of 1.9 × 10−19 W/Hz referenced to absorbed blackbody power at a modulation frequency of 300 Hz. Under optical loading above 1.83 fW, the detector remains stable with white-noise spectra extending down to ∼100 mHz.
Authors
- Jian Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1360-8969)
- Tianyuan Chi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0093-0565)
- Jingbo Wu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2969-5670)
- Xuecou Tu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8357-6221)
- Junhua Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-5366-0532)
- Y. Zhu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0100-9360)
- Rui Tan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-4464-6563)
- Mei Yu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3843-7948)
- Runfeng Su (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4609-2425)
- Peiheng Wu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2663-8953)
- Siming Zang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-8382-3874)
Institutions
- Nantong University (CN)
- Purple Mountain Laboratories (CN)
- Nanjing University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Applied Physics Letters
- Published
- 2025-10-20
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0288366
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Superconducting and THz Device Technology
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.15