177 research outputs found
Spin entanglement, decoherence and Bohm's EPR paradox
We obtain criteria for entanglement and the EPR paradox
for spin-entangled particles and analyse the effects of decoherence caused
by absorption and state purity errors. For a two qubit photonic state,
entanglement can occur for all transmission efficiencies. In this case,
the state preparation purity must be above a threshold value. However,
Bohm’s spin EPR paradox can be achieved only above a critical level of
loss. We calculate a required efficiency of 58%, which appears achievable
with current quantum optical technologies. For a macroscopic number of
particles prepared in a correlated state, spin entanglement and the EPR
paradox can be demonstrated using our criteria for efficiencies η > 1/3
and η > 2/3 respectively. This indicates a surprising insensitivity to loss
decoherence, in a macroscopic system of ultra-cold atoms or photons
Polariton Squeezing in Semiconductor Microcavities
We report squeezed polariton generation using parametric polariton four-wave
mixing in semiconductor microcavities in the strong coupling regime. The
geometry of the experiment corresponds to degenerate four-wave mixing, which
gives rise to a bistability threshold. Spatial effects in the nonlinear regime
are evidenced, and spatial filtering is required in order to optimize the
measured squeezing. By measuring the noise of the outgoing light, we infer a 9
percent squeezing on the polariton field close to the bistability turning
point
Noiseless signal amplification using positive electro-optic feedforward
We propose an electro-optic feedforward scheme which can in principle produce perfect noiseless signal amplification (signal transfer coefficient of T s = 1). We demonstrate the scheme experimentally and report, for a signal gain of 13.4 dB, a signal transfer coefficient of T s = 0.88 which is limited mainly by detector efficiencies (92%). The result clearly exceeds the standard quantum limit, T s = 0.5, set by the high gain limit of a phase insensitive linear amplifier. We use the scheme to amplify a small signal carried by 35% amplitude squeezed light and demonstrate that, unlike the fragile squeezed input, the signal amplified output is robust to propagation losses
Quantum projection noise limited interferometry with coherent atoms in a Ramsey type setup
Every measurement of the population in an uncorrelated ensemble of two-level
systems is limited by what is known as the quantum projection noise limit.
Here, we present quantum projection noise limited performance of a Ramsey type
interferometer using freely propagating coherent atoms. The experimental setup
is based on an electro-optic modulator in an inherently stable Sagnac
interferometer, optically coupling the two interfering atomic states via a
two-photon Raman transition. Going beyond the quantum projection noise limit
requires the use of reduced quantum uncertainty (squeezed) states. The
experiment described demonstrates atom interferometry at the fundamental noise
level and allows the observation of possible squeezing effects in an atom
laser, potentially leading to improved sensitivity in atom interferometers.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figures, published in Phys. Rev.
Double-lambda microscopic model for entangled light generation by four-wave-mixing
Motivated by recent experiments, we study four-wave-mixing in an atomic
double-{\Lambda} system driven by a far-detuned pump. Using the
Heisenberg-Langevin formalism, and based on the microscopic properties of the
medium, we calculate the classical and quantum properties of seed and conju-
gate beams beyond the linear amplifier approximation. A continuous variable
approach gives us access to relative-intensity noise spectra that can be
directly compared to experiments. Restricting ourselves to the cold-atom
regime, we predict the generation of quantum-correlated beams with a
relative-intensity noise spectrum well below the standard quantum limit (down
to -6 dB). Moreover entanglement between seed and conjugate beams measured by
an inseparability down to 0.25 is expected. This work opens the way to the
generation of entangled beams by four-wave mixing in a cold atomic sample.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, submitted to PR
Versatile Wideband Balanced Detector for Quantum Optical Homodyne Tomography
We present a comprehensive theory and an easy to follow method for the design
and construction of a wideband homodyne detector for time-domain quantum
measurements. We show how one can evaluate the performance of a detector in a
specific time-domain experiment based on electronic spectral characteristic of
that detector. We then present and characterize a high-performance detector
constructed using inexpensive, commercially available components such as
low-noise high-speed operational amplifiers and high-bandwidth photodiodes. Our
detector shows linear behavior up to a level of over 13 dB clearance between
shot noise and electronic noise, in the range from DC to 100 MHz. The detector
can be used for measuring quantum optical field quadratures both in the
continuous-wave and pulsed regimes with pulse repetition rates up to about 250
MHz.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, 1 tabl
Measuring the quality factor of a microwave cavity using superconduting qubit devices
We propose a method to create superpositions of two macroscopic quantum
states of a single-mode microwave cavity field interacting with a
superconducting charge qubit. The decoherence of such superpositions can be
determined by measuring either the Wigner function of the cavity field or the
charge qubit states. Then the quality factor Q of the cavity can be inferred
from the decoherence of the superposed states. The proposed method is
experimentally realizable within current technology even when the value is
relatively low, and the interaction between the qubit and the cavity field is
weak.Comment: 8 page
Non-equilibrium dynamics: Studies of reflection of Bose-Einstein condensates
The study of the non-equilibrium dynamics in Bose-Einstein condensed gases
has been dominated by the zero-temperature, mean field Gross-Pitaevskii
formalism. Motivated by recent experiments on the reflection of condensates
from silicon surfaces, we revisit the so-called {\em classical field}
description of condensate dynamics, which incorporates the effects of quantum
noise and can also be generalized to include thermal effects. The noise is
included in a stochastic manner through the initial conditions. We show that
the inclusion of such noise is important in the quantitative description of the
recent reflection experiments
Demonstration of the spatial separation of the entangled quantum side-bands of an optical field
Quantum optics experiments on "bright" beams typically probe correlations
between side-band modes. However the extra degree of freedom represented by
this dual mode picture is generally ignored. We demonstrate the experimental
operation of a device which can be used to separate the quantum side-bands of
an optical field. We use this device to explicitly demonstrate the quantum
entanglement between the side-bands of a squeezed beam
Experiments with Lasers and Frequency Doublers
Solid state laser sources, such as diode-pumped Nd:YAG lasers, have given us CW laser light of high power with unprecedented stability and low noise performance. In these lasers most of the technical sources of noise can be eliminated allowing them to be operated close to the theoretical noise limit set by the quantum properties of light. The next step of reducing the noise below the standard limit is known as squeezing. We present experimental progress in generating reliably squeezed light using the process of frequency doubling. We emphasize the long term stability that makes this a truly practical source of squeezed light. Our experimental results match noise spectra calculated with our recently developed models of coupled systems which include the noise generated inside the laser and its interaction with the frequency doubler. We conclude with some observations on evaluating quadrature squeezed states of light
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