Modeling Superconducting Resonators for Astronomical Photon Detection

The current generation of Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) polarization experiments demand high-performance background-limited sensor arrays to achieve the desired levels of instrument sensitivity. One particularly promising approach, known as MKIDs (Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detector), is based on monitoring the response of a resonator in the presence of radiation with sufficient energy to influence the device’s superconducting properties. This sensor architecture is amendable to realizing high focal plane density while maintaining readout with low parasitic thermal loads in a sub –kelvin cryogenic environment. We explore the use of a finite element analysis method solver to carry out electromagnetic simulations of representative sensor geometries.