Exploring the limits of single emitter detection in fluorescence and extinction

2008/08/25 by G. Wrigge, Gert Wrigge, J. Hwang +7 · 1 citation
Chemistry · Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Photochemistry and Electron Transfer Studies #Quantum optics and atomic interactions #Semiconductor Lasers and Optical Devices #quant-ph

paper · pdf · doi:10.1364/oe.16.017358

published as Optics Express, Vol. 16, Issue 22, pp. 17358-17365 (2008) · 11 pages, 5 figures

arxiv created 2008/08/25 · openalex publication_date 2008/10/14 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

We present an experimental comparison and a theoretical analysis of the signal-to-noise ratios in fluorescence and extinction spectroscopy of a single emitter. We show that because of its homodyne nature the extinction measurements can be advantageous if the emitter is weakly excited. Furthermore, we discuss the potential of this method for the detection and spectroscopy of weakly emitting systems such as rare earth ions.

Citations

• Extinction imaging of a single quantum emitter in its bright and dark states
• Efficient coupling of photons to a single molecule and the observation of its resonance fluorescence
• Strong Extinction of a Laser Beam by a Single Molecule
• Noise in homodyne and heterodyne detection

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