Hyper-spectral Imaging with Up-Converted Mid-Infrared Single-Photons

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2508.19970v1
• Date: Wed, 27 Aug 2025 15:25:36 GMT
• Title: Hyper-spectral Imaging with Up-Converted Mid-Infrared Single-Photons
• Authors: Yijian Meng, Asbjørn Arvad Jørgensen, Andreas Næsby Rasmussen, Lasse Høgstedt, Søren M. M. Friis, Mikael Lassen,
• Abstract summary: We present a cost-effective, visible-wavelength silicon single-photon avalanche diodes (Si-SPADs) hyperspectral imaging platform.<n>Time-correlated photon pairs generated via SPDC suppress classical intensity noise, enabling near shot-noise-limited hyperspectral imaging.<n>This platform paves the way toward scalable, quantum-enabled MIR imaging for applications in molecular diagnostics, environmental sensing, and biomedical research.
• Score: 0.0
• License: http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/
• Abstract: Hyperspectral imaging in the mid-infrared (MIR) spectral range provides unique molecular specificity by probing fundamental vibrational modes of molecular bonds, making it highly valuable for biomedical and biochemical applications. However, conventional MIR imaging techniques often rely on high-intensity illumination that can induce photodamage in sensitive biological tissues. Single-photon MIR imaging offers a label-free, non-invasive alternative, yet its adoption is hindered by the lack of efficient, room-temperature MIR single-photon detectors. We present a single-photon hyperspectral imaging platform that combines cavity-enhanced spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) with nonlinear frequency up-conversion. This approach enables MIR spectral imaging using cost-effective, visible-wavelength silicon single-photon avalanche diodes (Si-SPADs), supporting room-temperature, low-noise, and high-efficiency operation. Time-correlated photon pairs generated via SPDC suppress classical intensity noise, enabling near shot-noise-limited hyperspectral imaging. We demonstrate chemically specific single-photon imaging across the \SIrange{2.9}{3.6}{\micro\meter} range on biological (egg yolk, yeast) and polymeric (polystyrene, polyethylene) samples. The system delivers high-contrast, label-free imaging at ultralow photon flux, overcoming key limitations of current MIR technologies. This platform paves the way toward scalable, quantum-enabled MIR imaging for applications in molecular diagnostics, environmental sensing, and biomedical research.

Related papers

• Tungsten Germanide Single-Photon Detectors with Saturated Internal Detection Efficiency at Wavelengths up to 29 μm [0.0]
  Superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) are among the most sensitive single-photon detectors available.<n>We report on the development of SNSPDs based on tungsten germanide, a novel material system that combines high infrared sensitivity with compatibility for large-scale fabrication.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-11-25T21:29:38Z)
• Mid-IR hyperspectral imaging with undetected photons [0.0]
  We build a proof-of-concept nonlinear interferometer in a wide-field imaging arrangement combined with high-resolution spectral acquisition by pixelwise quantum transform infrared spectroscopy.<n>For the broadband range of 2300-3100 cm$-1$, covering the important CH-stretch band, we perform hyperspectral imaging that simultaneously resolves 3500 spatial modes.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-07-10T15:41:51Z)
• Bandwidth-tunable Telecom Single Photons Enabled by Low-noise Optomechanical Transduction [45.37752717923078]
  Single-photon sources are of fundamental importance to emergent quantum technologies. Nano-structured optomechanical crystals provide an attractive platform for single photon generation. Optical absorption heating has thus far prevented these systems from being widely used in practical applications.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-10-14T18:00:00Z)
• All-optical modulation with single-photons using electron avalanche [66.27103948750306]
  We demonstrate all-optical modulation enabled by electron avalanche process in silicon.<n>Our approach opens the possibility of gigahertz-speed, and potentially even faster, optical switching at the single-photon level.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2023-12-18T20:14:15Z)
• Practical quantum imaging with undetected photons [0.0]
  We describe a compact, portable, and low-cost system that is able to image objects at IR wavelengths without an IR source or IR detector. This imaging with undetected photons (IUP) approach uses quantum interference and correlations between entangled photon pairs to transfer image information from the IR to the visible.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2023-07-12T15:17:26Z)
• On-chip quantum information processing with distinguishable photons [55.41644538483948]
  Multi-photon interference is at the heart of photonic quantum technologies. Here, we experimentally demonstrate that detection can be implemented with a temporal resolution sufficient to interfere photons detuned on the scales necessary for cavity-based integrated photon sources. We show how time-resolved detection of non-ideal photons can be used to improve the fidelity of an entangling operation and to mitigate the reduction of computational complexity in boson sampling experiments.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2022-10-14T18:16:49Z)
• Mid-Infrared Microscopy via Position Correlations of Undetected Photons [0.0]
  Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) has recently emerged as a new powerful imaging tool. We implement and examine theoretically and numerically the complementary scenario - utilising the tight position correlations formed within photon pair at birth. We experimentally show resolutions below 10 $mu$m at a sensing wavelength of 3.7 $mu$m and demonstrate the viability of the technique for the life sciences.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2021-06-11T14:44:43Z)
• Data-Driven Discovery of Molecular Photoswitches with Multioutput Gaussian Processes [51.17758371472664]
  Photoswitchable molecules display two or more isomeric forms that may be accessed using light. We present a data-driven discovery pipeline for molecular photoswitches underpinned by dataset curation and multitask learning. We validate our proposed approach experimentally by screening a library of commercially available photoswitchable molecules.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-06-28T20:59:03Z)
• Quantum metamaterial for nondestructive microwave photon counting [52.77024349608834]
  We introduce a single-photon detector design operating in the microwave domain based on a weakly nonlinear metamaterial. We show that the single-photon detection fidelity increases with the length of the metamaterial to approach one at experimentally realistic lengths. In stark contrast to conventional photon detectors operating in the optical domain, the photon is not destroyed by the detection and the photon wavepacket is minimally disturbed.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-05-13T18:00:03Z)
• Hyperspectral-Multispectral Image Fusion with Weighted LASSO [68.04032419397677]
  We propose an approach for fusing hyperspectral and multispectral images to provide high-quality hyperspectral output. We demonstrate that the proposed sparse fusion and reconstruction provides quantitatively superior results when compared to existing methods on publicly available images.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-03-15T23:07:56Z)
• Hyperspectral Infrared Microscopy With Visible Light [0.4893345190925178]
  We introduce a new approach to IR hyperspectral microscopy, where the IR spectral map of the sample is obtained with off-the-shelf components built for visible light. The technique provides a wide field of view, fast readout, and negligible heat delivered to the sample, which makes it highly relevant to material and biological applications.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2020-02-14T10:29:32Z)

This list is automatically generated from the titles and abstracts of the papers in this site.

This site does not guarantee the quality of this site (including all information) and is not responsible for any consequences.