Quantum-Ready Microwave Detection with Scalable Graphene Bolometers in the Strong Localization Regime

Abstract

Exploiting quantum interference of charge carriers, epitaxial graphene grown on silicon carbide emerges as a game-changing platform for ultra-sensitive bolometric sensing, featuring an intrinsic resistive thermometer response unmatched by any other graphene variant. By achieving low and uniform carrier densities, we have accessed a new regime of strong charge localization that dramatically reduces thermal conductance, significantly enhancing bolometer performance. Here we present scalable graphene-based bolometers engineered for detecting GHz-range photons, a frequency domain essential for superconducting quantum processors. Our devices deliver a state-of-the-art noise equivalent power of 40 zW$/\sqrt{\rm Hz}$ at $T=40~$mK, enabled by the steep temperature dependence of thermal conductance, $G_{\rm th}\sim T^4$ for $T<100~$mK. These results establish epitaxial graphene bolometers as versatile and low-back-action detectors, unlocking new possibilities for next-generation quantum processors and pioneering investigations into the thermodynamics and thermalization pathways of strongly entangled quantum systems.