Superconducting transition-edge sensor
US5880468A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Aug 26, 1996 |
| Grant date | Mar 9, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 26, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01B21/085
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
This invention provides a method and apparatus for particle detection utilizing an Al/normal-metal bilayer transition-edge sensor (TES) coupled with a particle absorber. The TES is maintained in the transition region where its properties are extremely sensitive to temperature. In the detector, the energy of an absorbed particle is converted to heat by the absorber and the transition from the bilayer's superconducting to normal state is used to sense the temperature rise. The transition temperature, T.sub.c, of the bilayer can be reproducibly controlled as a function of the relative thicknesses and the total thickness of the superconducting and normal-metal layers. The range of available T.sub.c 's extends from below 50 mK to above 1 K, allowing the detector to be tailored to the application. For x-ray detection the preferred T.sub.c is about 50-150 mK. The width of the transition edge can be less than 0.1 mK, which allows very high detector sensitivity.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.