In the relentless quest to unravel the deepest mysteries of the universe, physicists have continuously pushed the boundaries of technology to probe the fundamental nature of matter, energy, space, and time. At the heart of this endeavor lie particle accelerators—immense machines that propel subatomic particles to near-light speeds before smashing them together. These high-energy collisions generate showers of diverse particles, sometimes revealing exotic phenomena that can challenge or extend the Standard Model of particle physics. As ambitions soar to build more powerful colliders capable of producing increasingly complex and intense particle sprays, researchers face formidable challenges in precisely tracking and characterizing the resulting subatomic chaos.
Emerging as a promising solution to these challenges is a new generation of quantum sensors designed to detect individual particles with unprecedented sensitivity and precision. A collaborative team of scientists from the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and international partners have taken a significant leap forward by developing and testing superconducting microwire single-photon detectors (SMSPDs) tailored for high-energy particle physics experiments. By leveraging the principles of quantum sensing, these detectors exhibit capabilities that stand to transform particle detection in the upcoming era of collider research.
Unlike traditional particle detectors, which often face trade-offs between spatial resolution, timing accuracy, and detection efficiency, the SMSPD technology offers a revolutionary approach. Fabricated with exquisite precision at JPL and calibrated at Caltech’s Intelligent Quantum Networks and Technologies (INQNET) labs, the SMSPDs were recently deployed and tested at Fermilab using energetic beams of protons, electrons, and pions. These experiments demonstrated the sensors’ remarkable ability to register the arrival of individual charged particles with both high spatial granularity and exceptional temporal resolution—a combination that has eluded conventional detectors.
Dr. Maria Spiropulu, a distinguished physicist at Caltech, highlights the importance of this innovation by emphasizing the upcoming paradigm shift in particle colliders’ performance over the next few decades. As accelerators achieve greater energy and beam intensity, the sheer volume and density of particle interactions will dramatically increase, overwhelming existing detection techniques. To advance the frontiers of particle physics—whether it be the hunt for elusive dark matter candidates or probing the very fabric of space and time—detectors equipped with quantum sensing capabilities like SMSPDs will be indispensable.
This novel instrumentation approach centers on the modification and optimization of superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs)—a technology already celebrated in quantum communication and astrophysics fields. The key distinction lies in the adaptation of these sensors for charged particle detection, accomplished by expanding their active area through the microwire architecture, thereby enhancing their capacity to capture the intense sprays emitted in collider events. This scale-up maintains the intrinsic quantum efficiency and conversion speed that make them ideal for handling rapid particle flux while ensuring minimal noise.
The Fermilab tests mark the first successful demonstration of SMSPDs in a high-energy physics context, showcasing their ability to discriminate particles across spatial coordinates and timing intervals with unprecedented fidelity. This 4D detection paradigm—capturing three spatial dimensions plus time—ushers a precise characterization of particle trajectories and interactions that could not only improve event reconstruction accuracy but also assist in filtering out background noise intrinsic to dense collision environments. By simultaneously resolving particle position and arrival time with sub-nanosecond accuracy, SMSPDs empower physicists to disentangle overlapping collision events that have traditionally obfuscated data analysis.
In practical terms, the capability to track particles with comparable ‘security camera’ precision across both space and time dimensions revolutionizes monitoring of complex particle jets produced in accelerator collisions. Just as high-frame-rate video footage enables the identification of a single individual within a bustling crowd, so too does the SMSPD-enhanced detection allow researchers to isolate primary particle interactions amid millions of simultaneous events. This capacity is critical as future colliders, like the proposed Future Circular Collider and prospective muon colliders, are poised to generate unprecedented collision rates, pushing detectors to their limits.
Furthermore, the SMSPD platform’s sensitivity extends into detecting lighter and potentially exotic particles, opening avenues to explore beyond the Standard Model. The extraordinary time resolution may enable identification of subtle signatures from particles that decay rapidly or traverse the detector with fleeting footprints. This aspect is critical for dark matter searches, which rely heavily on sensing rare, low-mass candidates that evade traditional sensors’ sensitivity thresholds. As Dr. Si Xie from Fermilab notes, the potential to discover or exclude new physics at these lower mass scales represents a groundbreaking frontier enabled by this technology.
The quantum roots of SMSPDs also connect them intrinsically with other cutting-edge quantum technologies. The sensors share synergy with the SNSPDs used in quantum networking initiatives, such as those at JPL’s Deep Space Optical Communications experiment, where similar superconducting detectors played a vital role in transmitting high-definition data via laser signals across vast cosmic distances. Moreover, the Intelligent Quantum Networks and Technologies program, founded by Caltech and AT&T, integrates these detector advances within a broader context aimed at realizing future quantum internet infrastructure, demonstrating the interdisciplinary impact from quantum physics to classical particle detection.
This research epitomizes the potential of collaborative, multidisciplinary efforts spanning national laboratories, academic institutions, and space research centers. It leverages expertise in superconducting material fabrication, quantum device engineering, and high-energy particle physics to produce a new class of instruments capable of meeting the challenges posed by next-generation collider experiments. The success of SMSPDs confirms a pathway toward detector arrays with large active surfaces, high count rates, and simultaneous four-dimensional resolution—essentials for tackling the data complexity expected in future experimental campaigns.
Funding support from the U.S. Department of Energy, Fermilab, Chile’s National Agency for Research and Development (ANID), and Federico Santa María Technical University has been instrumental in driving this pioneering work. The involvement of a world-class team, including key contributors from Caltech such as Christina Wang, Adi Bornheim, Andrew Mueller, and Sahil Patel, alongside JPL researchers Boris Korzh, Jamie Luskin, and Matthew Shaw, underscores the scale and ambition behind translating quantum sensor technology into a particle physics context.
As the field advances, these SMSPD detectors are poised to become foundational components in ambitious projects studying the fundamental properties of particles and forces. Their integration into planned facilities could dramatically enhance the precision with which physicists probe phenomena ranging from the Higgs boson to hypothetical dark sector particles. By bridging quantum sensing innovations with particle detection, this work not only propels experimental physics into a new era but also exemplifies how quantum technologies can reshape traditional scientific instrumentation landscapes.
In essence, the development and deployment of superconducting microwire single-photon detectors represent a quantum leap forward in particle accelerator instrumentation. Offering unparalleled spatial and temporal resolution with the ability to detect single charged particles, SMSPDs enable researchers to decode the intricate structure of particle collisions at an unprecedented scale and fidelity. This breakthrough promises to unlock new physics insights and sharpen our view of the microscopic universe—paving the way for discoveries that will deepen our understanding of the cosmos.
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Subject of Research: Quantum Sensing for High-Energy Particle Detection in Particle Physics Experiments
Article Title: High Energy Particle Detection with Large Area Superconducting Microwire Array
Web References:
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-0221/20/03/P03001
https://inqnet.caltech.edu/
https://home.cern/science/accelerators/future-circular-collider
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-tech-demo-streams-first-video-from-deep-space-via-laser/
References:
Maria Spiropulu et al., Journal of Instrumentation, Volume 20, March 2025, DOI:10.1088/1748-0221/20/03/P03001
Image Credits: Cristián Peña, Fermilab
Keywords
Particle accelerators, Quantum information science, Quantum mechanics, Basic research, Experimental physics, Instrumentation
