Absolute calibration of an EMCCD camera by quantum correlation, linking photon counting to the analog regime

We show how the same setup and procedure, exploiting spatially multimode quantum correlations, allows the absolute calibration of an electron-multiplying charge-coupled (EMCCD) camera from the analog regime down to the single-photon-counting level, just by adjusting the brightness of the quantum source. At the single-photon level, an EMCCD can be operated as an on-off detector, where quantum efficiency depends on the discriminating threshold. We develop a simple model to explain the connection of the two different regimes demonstrating that the efficiency estimated in the analog (bright) regime allows us to accurately predict the detector behavior in the photo-counting regime and vice versa. This work establishes a bridge between two regions of the optical measurements that up to now have been based on completely different standards, detectors, and measurement techniques. (C) 2016 Optical Society of America