A fiber optical superconducting nanowire detector with increased detector efficiency, fabricated directly on the tip of the input optical fiber. The fabrication on the tip of the fiber allows precise alignment of the detector to the fiber core, where the field mode is maximal. This construction maximizes the coupling efficiency to close to unity, without the need for complex alignment procedures, such as the need to align the input fiber with a previously fabricated device. The device includes a high-Q optical cavity, such that any photon entering the device will be reflected to and fro within the cavity numerous times, thereby increasing its chances of absorption by the nanowire structure. This is achieved by using dedicated cavity mirrors with very high reflectivity, with the meander nanowire structure contained within the cavity between the end mirrors, such that photons impinge on the nanowire structure with every traverse of the cavity.

An X-ray analyzer includes an X-ray excitation device, an X-ray detection device, and a gate valve. The X-ray excitation device includes a sample chamber in which a sample as an analysis target can be disposed. The X-ray detection device includes a TES which can detect a characteristic X-ray emitted from the sample, and a room-temperature shield which surrounds the TES. The gate valve is disposed between the X-ray excitation device and the X-ray detection device. The inside of the room-temperature shield is provided to enable communication with the inside of the sample chamber. The gate valve includes a partition plate provided to enable blocking of a communication between the inside of the sample chamber and the inside of the room-temperature shield. The partition plate has a pressure-resistant X-ray window.

Disclosed is a method to modify the superconductive properties of a potentially or effectively superconductive material. The method includes providing a reflective or photonic structure and placing said superconductive material in or on the structure. The method also includes providing a structure which has an electromagnetic mode which is resonant with a transition in the material and controlling, in particular enhancing, the superconductivity, and thus the mobility of the charge carriers. This results in a higher operating temperature and an increased electrical current in the material, by means of strongly coupling the material to the local electromagnetic vacuum field and exploiting the formation of states of spatial extension corresponding to the mode volume of the electromagnetic resonance. Also disclosed is an electronic, electro-optical or optoelectronic device including superconductive material located in or on a reflective or photonic structure.

A device for single-photon detection comprising two superconducting detectors, a bias-current source, a filter element and a readout circuit. Each detector forms a detection area for absorption of incident photons and is connected in parallel; each detector being maintained below its critical temperature and provided with an electrical bias current situated close to and below its critical current so as to be maintained in a non-resistive superconducting state, and configured to transition, at photon absorption, from the non-resistive state to a resistive state due to an increase in current density within the detector above the critical current. The readout circuit senses a voltage change corresponding to the, allowing creation of an event signal for each absorption of an incident photon by a detector. The device includes a current-redistribution portion for redistributing current arising after absorption of incident photons so as to avoid increases in current density above the critical current.

A transistor includes (i) a first wire including a semiconducting component configured to operate in an on state at temperatures above a semiconducting threshold temperature and (ii) a second wire including a superconducting component configured to operate in a superconducting state while: a temperature of the superconducting component is below a superconducting threshold temperature and a first input current supplied to the superconducting component is below a current threshold. The semiconducting component is located adjacent to the superconducting component. In response to a first input voltage, the semiconducting component is configured to generate an electromagnetic field sufficient to lower the current threshold such that the first input current exceeds the lowered current threshold.

Systems and methods for performing open-loop quantum error mitigation using quantum measurement emulations are provided. The open-loop quantum error mitigation methods do not require the performance of state readouts or state tomography, reducing hardware requirements and increasing overall computation speed. To perform a quantum measurement emulation, an error mitigation apparatus is configured to stochastically apply a quantum gate to a qubit or set of qubits during a quantum computational process. The stochastic application of the quantum gate projects the quantum state of the affected qubits onto an axis, reducing a trace distance between the quantum state and a desired quantum state.

According to one embodiment, a superconducting element used as a pixel for detecting a particle is disclosed. The superconducting element includes at least one superconducting strip. The at least one superconducting strip includes a superconducting portion extending in a first direction, including first and second ends and made of a first superconducting material, a first conductive portion connected to the first end of the superconducting portion, and a second conductive portion connected to the second end of the superconducting portion. A superconducting region of the superconducting portion is configured to be dived when the particle is made incident on the superconducting portion along the first direction via the first conductive portion.

A superconducting nanowire photon detection array adjusts a number of the array elements, a lens array as an photon alignment system, splits transmitted lights into a plurality of beams, and converges the plurality of beams to a superconducting nanowire detection area; detects a surface of an object by adopting a pulsed laser, transmits different light pulses reflected by the surface of the object through the lens array, and records a round-trip time of each photon; collects the photons detected by each array element, takes the array elements as picture elements, and calculates a gray value of the picture element; and plots a gray-scale image by taking the picture elements as pixel points, calculates a distance between the object and the pixel points, and reconstructs a three-dimensional image of the object and the distance between the object and the pixel points.

Apparatus and methods relating to programmable superconducting cells are described. A programmable superconducting cell can be formed from a superconducting current loop having at least two terminals connected to the loop. The current loop and terminals can be formed from a single layer of superconducting material. The programmable superconducting cell can be incorporated into a crossbar architecture to form a high-speed vector-matrix multiplying processor for deep neural network computations.

A system includes a plurality of superconducting wires connected in parallel with one another. The plurality of superconducting wires includes a first superconducting wire and a second superconducting wire. The plurality of superconducting wires are configured to, while receiving a bias current provided to the parallel combination of the plurality of superconducting wires, operate in a superconducting state in the absence of a trigger current. The first superconducting wire is configured to, while receiving the bias current, transition to a non-superconducting state in response to receiving the trigger current. The second superconducting wire is configured to, while receiving the bias current, transition to a non-superconducting state in response to the first superconducting wire transitioning to the non-superconducting state.