233 research outputs found
Multimode theory of measurement-induced non-Gaussian operation on wideband squeezed light
We present a multimode theory of non-Gaussian operation induced by an
imperfect on/off-type photon detector on a splitted beam from a wideband
squeezed light. The events are defined for finite time duration in the time
domain. The non-Gaussian output state is measured by the homodyne detector with
finite bandwidh . Under this time- and band-limitation to the quantm states,
we develop a formalism to evaluate the frequency mode matching between the
on/off trigger channel and the conditional signal beam in the homodyne channel.
Our formalism is applied to the CW and pulsed schemes. We explicitly calculate
the Wigner function of the conditional non-Gaussian output state in a realistic
situation. Good mode matching is achieved for BT\alt1, where the discreteness
of modes becomes prominant, and only a few modes become dominant both in the
on/off and the homodyne channels. If the trigger beam is projected nearly onto
the single photon state in the most dominant mode in this regime, the most
striking non-classical effect will be observed in the homodyne statistics. The
increase of and the dark counts degrades the non-classical effect.Comment: 20 pages, 14 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Single-photon excitation of a coherent state: catching the elementary step of stimulated light emission
When a single quantum of electromagnetic field excitation is added to the
same spatio-temporal mode of a coherent state, a new field state is generated
that exhibits intermediate properties between those of the two parents. Such a
single-photon-added coherent state is obtained by the action of the photon
creation operator on a coherent state and can thus be regarded as the result of
the most elementary excitation process of a classical light field. Here we
present and describe in depth the experimental realization of such states and
their complete analysis by means of a novel ultrafast, time-domain, quantum
homodyne tomography technique clearly revealing their non-classical character.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
Subnanosecond spectral diffusion of a single quantum dot in a nanowire
We have studied spectral diffusion of the photoluminescence of a single CdSe
quantum dot inserted in a ZnSe nanowire. We have measured the characteristic
diffusion time as a function of pumping power and temperature using a recently
developed technique [G. Sallen et al, Nature Photon. \textbf{4}, 696 (2010)]
that offers subnanosecond resolution. These data are consistent with a model
where only a \emph{single} carrier wanders around in traps located in the
vicinity of the quantum dot
Subnanosecond spectral diffusion measurement using photon correlation
Spectral diffusion is a result of random spectral jumps of a narrow line as a
result of a fluctuating environment. It is an important issue in spectroscopy,
because the observed spectral broadening prevents access to the intrinsic line
properties. However, its characteristic parameters provide local information on
the environment of a light emitter embedded in a solid matrix, or moving within
a fluid, leading to numerous applications in physics and biology. We present a
new experimental technique for measuring spectral diffusion based on photon
correlations within a spectral line. Autocorrelation on half of the line and
cross-correlation between the two halves give a quantitative value of the
spectral diffusion time, with a resolution only limited by the correlation
set-up. We have measured spectral diffusion of the photoluminescence of a
single light emitter with a time resolution of 90 ps, exceeding by four orders
of magnitude the best resolution reported to date
Mode-coupling theory for structural and conformational dynamics of polymer melts
A mode-coupling theory for dense polymeric systems is developed which
unifyingly incorporates the segmental cage effect relevant for structural
slowing down and polymer chain conformational degrees of freedom. An ideal
glass transition of polymer melts is predicted which becomes molecular-weight
independent for large molecules. The theory provides a microscopic
justification for the use of the Rouse theory in polymer melts, and the results
for Rouse-mode correlators and mean-squared displacements are in good agreement
with computer simulation results.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, Phys. Rev. Lett. in pres
Quantum state reconstruction of the single-photon Fock state
We have reconstructed the quantum state of optical pulses containing single
photons using the method of phase-randomized pulsed optical homodyne
tomography. The single-photon Fock state |1> was prepared using conditional
measurements on photon pairs born in the process of parametric down-conversion.
A probability distribution of the phase-averaged electric field amplitudes with
a strongly non-Gaussian shape is obtained with the total detection efficiency
of (55+-1)%. The angle-averaged Wigner function reconstructed from this
distribution shows a strong dip reaching classically impossible negative values
around the origin of the phase space.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Physical Review Letters. Avoid
downloading PDF due to extremely poor figure resolution. Use Postscrip
Synthesis and tomographic characterization of the displaced Fock state of light
Displaced Fock states of the electromagnetic field have been synthesized by
overlapping the pulsed optical single-photon Fock state |1> with coherent
states on a high-reflection beamsplitter and completely characterized by means
of quantum homodyne tomography. The reconstruction reveals highly non-classical
properties of displaced Fock states, such as negativity of the Wigner function
and photon number oscillations. This is the first time complete tomographic
reconstruction has been performed on a highly non-classical optical state
Simulation study of Non-ergodicity Transitions: Gelation in Colloidal Systems with Short Range Attractions
Computer simulations were used to study the gel transition occurring in
colloidal systems with short range attractions. A colloid-polymer mixture was
modelled and the results were compared with mode coupling theory expectations
and with the results for other systems (hard spheres and Lennard Jones). The
self-intermediate scattering function and the mean squared displacement were
used as the main dynamical quantities. Two different colloid packing fractions
have been studied. For the lower packing fraction, -scaling holds and
the wave-vector analysis of the correlation function shows that gelation is a
regular non-ergodicity transition within MCT. The leading mechanism for this
novel non-ergodicity transition is identified as bond formation caused by the
short range attraction. The time scale and diffusion coefficient also show
qualitatively the expected behaviour, although different exponents are found
for the power-law divergences of these two quantities. The non-Gaussian
parameter was also studied and very large correction to Gaussian behaviour
found. The system with higher colloid packing fraction shows indications of a
nearby high-order singularity, causing -scaling to fail, but the
general expectations for non-ergodicity transitions still hold.Comment: 13 pages, 15 figure
Role of macrophage sialoadhesin in host defense against the sialylated pathogen group B <em>Streptococcus</em>
ABSTRACT: Several bacterial pathogens decorate their surfaces with sialic acid (Sia) residues within cell wall components or capsular exopolysaccharides. Sialic acid expression can promote bacterial virulence by blocking complement activation or by engagement of inhibitory sialic acid-binding immunoglobulin-like lectins (Siglecs) on host leukocytes. Expressed at high levels on splenic and lymph node macrophages, sialoadhesin (Sn) is a unique Siglec with an elongated structure that lacks intracellular signaling motifs. Sialoadhesin allows macrophage to engage certain sialylated pathogens and stimulate inflammatory responses, but the in vivo significance of sialoadhesin in infection has not been shown. We demonstrate that macrophages phagocytose the sialylated pathogen group B Streptococcus (GBS) and increase bactericidal activity via sialoadhesin-sialic-acid-mediated recognition. Sialoadhesin expression on marginal zone metallophillic macrophages in the spleen trapped circulating GBS and restricted the spread of the GBS to distant organs, reducing mortality. Specific IgM antibody responses to GBS challenge were also impaired in sialoadhesin-deficient mice. Thus, sialoadhesin represents a key bridge to orchestrate innate and adaptive immune defenses against invasive sialylated bacterial pathogens. KEY MESSAGE: Sialoadhesin is critical for macrophages to phagocytose and clear GBS. Increased GBS organ dissemination in the sialoadhesin-deficient mice. Reduced anti-GBS IgM production in the sialoadhesin-deficient mice. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00109-014-1157-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users
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