snAPI
Fast, Intuitive, and Versatile Python Wrapper
Quantity
Key Highlights
- Combine Python’s flexibility with C++ processing speed
- Build custom analysis pipelines tailored to your research
- Handle massive data streams on-the-fly
- Automate experiments through simple Python scripting
- Run the same code on Windows and Linux
Description
snAPI (Snappy New API) is a high-level Python wrapper developed by PicoQuant for direct communication with its Time-Correlated Single Photon Counting (TCSPC) and Time Tagging Electronics.
It bridges the high-speed capabilities of PicoQuant's hardware with the flexibility of Python. Rather than relying solely on a graphical user interface, researchers can use snAPI to programmatically configure instruments, acquire photon events, process data, and create customized measurement workflows.
The API is built around a C++ implementation to provide efficient hardware communication while exposing a Python interface that is easier to integrate into research software, automation scripts, and custom analysis pipelines. Users can access photon data directly from the hardware or load measurement data from files for further processing.
snAPI includes ready-to-use measurement classes such as TimeTrace, Histogram, Correlation, Unfold, and RAW. These can be combined sequentially with data manipulators such as Coincidence, Herald, Merge, and Delay, allowing users to build more sophisticated photon-data processing workflows without implementing every low-level operation themselves.
For quantum optics applications, snAPI provides functions for coincidence correlation, photon antibunching, entanglement experiments, and single-photon measurements. It can also be used to implement White Rabbit synchronization between MultiHarp 150 and MultiHarp 160 systems, enabling coordinated measurements across multiple time-tagging devices.
Specifications
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Software Type | Python Wrapper / High-Level API |
| Developer | PicoQuant |
| License | Free |
| Programming Language | Python |
| Underlying Implementation | C++ |
| Primary Function | Device communication, configuration, data acquisition & analysis |
| Hardware Access | Direct access to PicoQuant TCSPC / Time Tagging devices |
| File-Based Processing | Supported |
| Real-Time Analysis | Supported |
| Raw Data Access | Supported |
| Measurement Classes | TimeTrace, Histogram, Correlation, Unfold, RAW |
| Correlation | FCS, g² and other photon-correlation measurements |
| Data Manipulators | Coincidence, Herald, Merge, Delay |
| Automation / Custom Programming | Supported |
| Operating Systems | Windows and Linux |
| Installation | pip / GitHub |
| Data Synchronization | White Rabbit supported with MultiHarp 150/160 |
Application
snAPI is particularly suitable for researchers who need programmatic control, automation, custom data processing, or integration of PicoQuant hardware into larger experimental systems.
Quantum Optics & Quantum Technology
- Photon Antibunching
- Coincidence Correlation
- Quantum Communication
- Quantum Entanglement
- Quantum Teleportation
- Quantum Information Processing
- Single-Photon Source Characterization
- g²(τ) Measurements
Life Science & Biophotonics
- Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (FCS)
- Single-Molecule Measurements
- Photon-counting experiments
- Time-resolved fluorescence
- Custom fluorescence analysis pipelines
Research Automation & Custom Instrumentation
- Automated TCSPC measurements
- Automated time-tagging experiments
- Custom photon-data analysis
- Real-time photon-stream processing
- Multi-device synchronization
- Integration with Python-based laboratory software
- Custom measurement and data-processing pipelines
PicoQuant specifically positions snAPI as a tool for creating custom algorithms, complex calculations, and tailored data-processing pipelines directly in Python.