As the fields of quantum computing, quantum sensing, and quantum communication mature into engineering disciplines, a robust measurement infrastructure is needed that is available to all developers of quantum technology. This requirement for measurement capabilities is immediate, and will grow more urgent as planned use cases, such as quantum networks, are developed and brought online. Thus, it is essential to address this need now. An accurate, easily accessible, fast-turnaround measurement capability is key to accelerating the development process of quantum components. This need is particularly acute for single-photon sources and detectors, which are critical components of many quantum systems for sensing, communications, and computing. At present, characterizing the performance of these components is not straightforward, and new measurement methods and tools need to be developed and/or existing methods must be more widely shared. It is within this context that an invitation-only QED-C workshop was held (September 2021) with the goals of (1) understanding the quantum industry’s measurement needs for single-photon sources and detectors, (2) assessing the state of the art in single-photon source and detector characterization, and (3) clarifying the gaps in measurement capabilities.
Quantum industry stakeholders are faced with the dual challenges of not only commercializing emerging quantum technologies, but also implementing or developing their own internal metrology tools1 for validating device and component performance. The underlying metrology services pertinent to single-photon sources and detectors are currently being formulated by national metrology institutions such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which have unique capabilities and a mission to support industry needs. By bringing together quantum technology developers and metrology experts from industry, government, and academia, the workshop collected the information needed to help prioritize single-photon sources and detector measurement service needs. This report describes the highest-priority measurement needs of quantum device and system researchers and developers, as well as recommendations for addressing the needs identified in the workshop.
To develop the necessary metrology and metrology services required to promote advances in single-photon source and detector technology, a committee of experts was formed to summarize the issues and needs brought forth from the workshop, categorize them to identify specific research tasks, and highlight activity and funding priorities. With input from the workshop attendees, the committee identified four focus areas that would significantly advance the development and adoption of single-photon technologies and developed priority recommendations (see Section 4) for each of these areas:
1 Metrology is the science of measurement