Photonic simulation of entanglement growth and engineering after a spin chain quench

The time evolution of quantum many-body systems is one of the most important processes for benchmarking quantum simulators. The most curious feature of such dynamics is the growth of quantum entanglement to an amount proportional to the system size (volume law) even when interactions are local. This phenomenon has great ramifications for fundamental aspects, while its optimisation clearly has an impact on technology (e.g., for on-chip quantum networking). Here we use an integrated photonic chip with a circuit-based approach to simulate the dynamics of a spin chain and maximise the entanglement generation. The resulting entanglement is certified by constructing a second chip, which measures the entanglement between multiple distant pairs of simulated spins, as well as the block entanglement entropy. This is the first photonic simulation and optimisation of the extensive growth of entanglement in a spin chain, and opens up the use of photonic circuits for optimising quantum devices

Programmable photonics : an opportunity for an accessible large-volume PIC ecosystem

We look at the opportunities presented by the new concepts of generic programmable photonic integrated circuits (PIC) to deploy photonics on a larger scale. Programmable PICs consist of waveguide meshes of tunable couplers and phase shifters that can be reconfigured in software to define diverse functions and arbitrary connectivity between the input and output ports. Off-the-shelf programmable PICs can dramatically shorten the development time and deployment costs of new photonic products, as they bypass the design-fabrication cycle of a custom PIC. These chips, which actually consist of an entire technology stack of photonics, electronics packaging and software, can potentially be manufactured cheaper and in larger volumes than application-specific PICs. We look into the technology requirements of these generic programmable PICs and discuss the economy of scale. Finally, we make a qualitative analysis of the possible application spaces where generic programmable PICs can play an enabling role, especially to companies who do not have an in-depth background in PIC technology

Optical network technologies for future digital cinema

Digital technology has transformed the information flow and support infrastructure for numerous application domains, such as cellular communications. Cinematography, traditionally, a film based medium, has embraced digital technology leading to innovative transformations in its work flow. Digital cinema supports transmission of high resolution content enabled by the latest advancements in optical communications and video compression. In this paper we provide a survey of the optical network technologies for supporting this bandwidth intensive traffic class. We also highlight the significance and benefits of the state of the art in optical technologies that support the digital cinema work flow

Ultrafast wavelength jumping and wavelength adjustment with low current using monolithically integrated FML for long-reach UDWDM-PON

Ultrafast wavelength jumping at optical network units (ONUs) for an access network with frequency modulated lasers (FMLs) is demonstrated. This FML consists of an intracavity tunable phase section and filtering gain section. It provides a total of 4.2 nm tuning range with fast wavelength jumping (2.2 nm in 1 µs) and fast adjustment (1.3 nm in 1.8 ns), providing a candidate for the fast tuning ONU for coherent ultradense wavelength-division multiplexing passive optical networks (WDM-PONs).Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Principles of Neuromorphic Photonics

In an age overrun with information, the ability to process reams of data has become crucial. The demand for data will continue to grow as smart gadgets multiply and become increasingly integrated into our daily lives. Next-generation industries in artificial intelligence services and high-performance computing are so far supported by microelectronic platforms. These data-intensive enterprises rely on continual improvements in hardware. Their prospects are running up against a stark reality: conventional one-size-fits-all solutions offered by digital electronics can no longer satisfy this need, as Moore's law (exponential hardware scaling), interconnection density, and the von Neumann architecture reach their limits. With its superior speed and reconfigurability, analog photonics can provide some relief to these problems; however, complex applications of analog photonics have remained largely unexplored due to the absence of a robust photonic integration industry. Recently, the landscape for commercially-manufacturable photonic chips has been changing rapidly and now promises to achieve economies of scale previously enjoyed solely by microelectronics. The scientific community has set out to build bridges between the domains of photonic device physics and neural networks, giving rise to the field of \emph{neuromorphic photonics}. This article reviews the recent progress in integrated neuromorphic photonics. We provide an overview of neuromorphic computing, discuss the associated technology (microelectronic and photonic) platforms and compare their metric performance. We discuss photonic neural network approaches and challenges for integrated neuromorphic photonic processors while providing an in-depth description of photonic neurons and a candidate interconnection architecture. We conclude with a future outlook of neuro-inspired photonic processing.Comment: 28 pages, 19 figure