Metrological evaluation of the influence of the detection gate width on a single photon detector through optical attenuation

In this paper, we propose a method for evaluating the impact of the detection gate width of an InGaAs/InP singlephoton avalanche diode detector by analyzing the probability of detecting 0 or 1 photon as a function of the optical attenuation and the consequent variation of the average number of photons per gate measured by the detector ((mu) over bar). With a detection efficiency eta of 15 % and a dead time of 1 mu s, considering gate widths of 4 ns, 8 ns, 12 ns, 16 ns, and 20 ns, an adequate optical power range for calibrating a single-photon avalanche diode detector was obtained in the range of 0.15 nW to 10 nW, with linear behavior and low measurement uncertainty of calibration curve fittings for 4 ns and 8 ns gate widths, respectively, associated with products (mu) over bar eta of 0.32 x 10(-4) to 190 x 10(-4) and 2.90 x 10(-4) to 140 x 10(-4).

Automated summary

In this paper, a method for evaluating the impact of the detection gate width of an InGaAs/InP single-photon avalanche diode detector is proposed. The method involves analyzing the probability of detecting photons and the variation of the average number of photons per gate. Results show that using gate widths of 4 ns and 8 ns provide an adequate optical power range for calibration.