---
_id: '63451'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: <jats:p>Superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) can enable
    photon-number resolution (PNR) based on accurate measurements of the detector’s
    response time to few-photon optical pulses. In this work, we investigate the impact
    of the optical pulse shape and duration on the accuracy of this method. We find
    that Gaussian temporal pulse shapes yield cleaner arrival-time histograms and,
    thus, more accurate PNR, compared to bandpass-filtered pulses of equal bandwidth.
    For low system jitter and an optical pulse duration comparable to the other jitter
    contributions, photon numbers can be discriminated in our system with a commercial
    SNSPD. At 60 ps optical pulse duration, photon-number discrimination is significantly
    reduced. Furthermore, we highlight the importance of using the correct arrival-time
    histogram model when analyzing photon-number assignment. Using exponentially modified
    Gaussian distributions, instead of the commonly used Gaussian distributions, we
    can more accurately determine photon-number misidentification probabilities. Finally,
    we reconstruct the positive operator-valued measures of the detector, revealing
    sharp features that indicate the intrinsic PNR capabilities.</jats:p>
article_number: '016102'
author:
- first_name: Timon
  full_name: Schapeler, Timon
  id: '55629'
  last_name: Schapeler
  orcid: 0000-0001-7652-1716
- first_name: Isabell
  full_name: Mischke, Isabell
  last_name: Mischke
- first_name: Fabian
  full_name: Schlue, Fabian
  id: '63579'
  last_name: Schlue
- first_name: Michael
  full_name: Stefszky, Michael
  id: '42777'
  last_name: Stefszky
- first_name: Benjamin
  full_name: Brecht, Benjamin
  id: '27150'
  last_name: Brecht
  orcid: '0000-0003-4140-0556 '
- first_name: Christine
  full_name: Silberhorn, Christine
  id: '26263'
  last_name: Silberhorn
- first_name: Tim
  full_name: Bartley, Tim
  id: '49683'
  last_name: Bartley
citation:
  ama: Schapeler T, Mischke I, Schlue F, et al. Practical considerations for assignment
    of photon numbers with SNSPDs. <i>APL Quantum</i>. 2026;3(1). doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127">10.1063/5.0304127</a>
  apa: Schapeler, T., Mischke, I., Schlue, F., Stefszky, M., Brecht, B., Silberhorn,
    C., &#38; Bartley, T. (2026). Practical considerations for assignment of photon
    numbers with SNSPDs. <i>APL Quantum</i>, <i>3</i>(1), Article 016102. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127">https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127</a>
  bibtex: '@article{Schapeler_Mischke_Schlue_Stefszky_Brecht_Silberhorn_Bartley_2026,
    title={Practical considerations for assignment of photon numbers with SNSPDs},
    volume={3}, DOI={<a href="https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127">10.1063/5.0304127</a>},
    number={1016102}, journal={APL Quantum}, publisher={AIP Publishing}, author={Schapeler,
    Timon and Mischke, Isabell and Schlue, Fabian and Stefszky, Michael and Brecht,
    Benjamin and Silberhorn, Christine and Bartley, Tim}, year={2026} }'
  chicago: Schapeler, Timon, Isabell Mischke, Fabian Schlue, Michael Stefszky, Benjamin
    Brecht, Christine Silberhorn, and Tim Bartley. “Practical Considerations for Assignment
    of Photon Numbers with SNSPDs.” <i>APL Quantum</i> 3, no. 1 (2026). <a href="https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127">https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127</a>.
  ieee: 'T. Schapeler <i>et al.</i>, “Practical considerations for assignment of photon
    numbers with SNSPDs,” <i>APL Quantum</i>, vol. 3, no. 1, Art. no. 016102, 2026,
    doi: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127">10.1063/5.0304127</a>.'
  mla: Schapeler, Timon, et al. “Practical Considerations for Assignment of Photon
    Numbers with SNSPDs.” <i>APL Quantum</i>, vol. 3, no. 1, 016102, AIP Publishing,
    2026, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304127">10.1063/5.0304127</a>.
  short: T. Schapeler, I. Mischke, F. Schlue, M. Stefszky, B. Brecht, C. Silberhorn,
    T. Bartley, APL Quantum 3 (2026).
date_created: 2026-01-05T10:00:58Z
date_updated: 2026-03-25T08:00:27Z
department:
- _id: '15'
- _id: '623'
- _id: '288'
doi: 10.1063/5.0304127
intvolume: '         3'
issue: '1'
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
oa: '1'
project:
- _id: '191'
  name: 'PhoQuant: Photonische Quantencomputer -  Quantencomputing Testplattform'
- _id: '239'
  name: 'ERC-Grant: QuESADILLA: Quantum Engineering Superconducting Array Detectors
    in Low-Light Applications'
publication: APL Quantum
publication_identifier:
  issn:
  - 2835-0103
publication_status: published
publisher: AIP Publishing
status: public
title: Practical considerations for assignment of photon numbers with SNSPDs
type: journal_article
user_id: '27150'
volume: 3
year: '2026'
...