Conditional large Fock state preparation and field state reconstruction in Cavity QED

We propose a scheme for producing large Fock states in Cavity QED via the implementation of a highly selective atom-field interaction. It is based on Raman excitation of a three-level atom by a classical field and a quantized field mode. Selectivity appears when one tunes to resonance a specific transition inside a chosen atom-field subspace, while other transitions remain dispersive, as a consequence of the field dependent electronic energy shifts. We show that this scheme can be also employed for reconstructing, in a new and efficient way, the Wigner function of the cavity field state.Comment: 4 Revtex pages with 3 postscript figures. Submitted for publicatio

Gap solitons in spatiotemporal photonic crystals

We generalize the concept of nonlinear periodic structures to systems that show arbitrary spacetime variations of the refractive index. Nonlinear pulse propagation through these spatiotemporal photonic crystals can be described, for shallow nonstationary gratings, by coupled mode equations which are a generalization of the traditional equations used for stationary photonic crystals. Novel gap soliton solutions are found by solving a modified massive Thirring model. They represent the missing link between the gap solitons in static photonic crystals and resonance solitons found in dynamic gratings.Comment: 3 figures, submitte

Measurements of pernitric acid at the South Pole during ISCAT 2000

The first measurements of pernitric acid at the South Pole were performed during the second Investigation of Sulfur Chemistry in the Antarctic Troposphere (ISCAT 2000). Observed HO2NO2 concentrations averaged 25 pptv. Simple steady-state calculations constrained by measurements show that the lifetime of pernitric acid was largely controlled by dry deposition, with thermal decomposition becoming increasingly important at warmer temperatures. We determined that the pernitric acid equilibrium constant is less uncertain than indicated in the literature. One consequence of pernitric acid deposition to the snow surface is that it is an important sink for both NOx and HOx. Another is that the photochemistry of HO2NO2 in the Antarctic snowpack may be a NOx source in addition to nitrate photolysis. This might be one of the important differences in snow photochemistry between the South Pole and warmer polar sites

Gap solitons in Bragg gratings with a harmonic superlattice

Solitons are studied in a model of a fiber Bragg grating (BG) whose local reflectivity is subjected to periodic modulation. The superlattice opens an infinite number of new bandgaps in the model's spectrum. Averaging and numerical continuation methods show that each gap gives rise to gap solitons (GSs), including asymmetric and double-humped ones, which are not present without the superlattice.Computation of stability eigenvalues and direct simulation reveal the existence of completely stable families of fundamental GSs filling the new gaps - also at negative frequencies, where the ordinary GSs are unstable. Moving stable GSs with positive and negative effective mass are found too.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, submitted to EP

Langevin equation for the squeezing of light by means of a parametric oscillator

We show that the Langevin equation for a nonlinear-optical system may be obtained directly from the Heisenberg equation of motion for the annihilation operators, provided a certain linearization procedure is valid. We apply the technique to the parametric oscillator used to generate squeezed light and compare our results to those obtained from Fokker-Planck-type equations. We argue that, only when the Wigner, as opposed to the P or Q, representation of quantum optics is used, do we get a correct description of the underlying stochastic process. We show how the linearization procedure may be carried out to describe the operation of the parametric oscillator both below threshold, where a squeezed vacuum state results, and above threshold, where we find a squeezed coherent state. In the region of the threshold a heuristic extension of the method leads to a possible description of the system by means of a nonlinear Langevin equation

Raman effect in AlGaAs waveguides for subpicosecond pulses

The Raman effect in semiconductor waveguides below half‐gap is studied both experimentally and numerically. We report the depolarized Raman gain spectra up to 300 cm−1 in Al0.24Ga0.76As at pump wavelengths of 0.515 and 1.55 μm from the measurement of the absolute Raman scattering cross sections using GaAs as a reference scatterer. In addition, the coupled propagation equations for the AlGaAs waveguides are modified to include the Raman effect. By solving the coupled propagation equations numerically, we verify that the energy transfer between two orthogonally polarized pulses demonstrated in previous pump‐probe experiments [M. N. Islam et al., J. Appl. Phys. 71, 1927 (1992)] is caused by Raman effect. We also show numerically that the Raman effect induces spectral distortions on the pulses, and the energy transfer is inversely proportional to the pulse widths. The energy transfer results in a severe cross‐talk problem for sub‐picosecond pulses in AlGaAs waveguides. For example, the energy exchange is about 30% for 300 fs pulses under π phase shift conditions. Therefore, the Raman effect limits the performance of semiconductor waveguides in optical switching applications for sub‐picosecond pulses. © 1995 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71265/2/JAPIAU-78-4-2198-1.pd

Two-Photon Interferometry for High-Resolution Imaging

We discuss advantages of using non-classical states of light for two aspects of optical imaging: creating of miniature images on photosensitive substrates, which constitutes the foundation for optical lithography, and imaging of micro objects. In both cases, the classical resolution limit given by the Rayleigh criterion is approximately a half of the optical wavelength. It has been shown, however, that by using multi-photon quantum states of the light field, and multi-photon sensitive material or detector, this limit can be surpassed. We give a rigorous quantum mechanical treatment of this problem, address some particularly widespread misconceptions and discuss the requirements for turning the research on quantum imaging into a practical technology.Comment: Presented at PQE 2001. To appear in Special Issue of Journal of Modern Optic

Observation of polarization quantum noise of laser radiation in Rb vapor cell

We present experimental study of polarization quantum noise of laser radiation passed through optically think vapor of Rb87. We observe a step-like noise spectrum. We discuss various factor which may result in such noise spectrum and prevent observation of squeezing of quantum fluctuations predicted in Matsko et al. PRA 63, 043814 (2001).Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures. Translated from Russian by I. Novikov

In-loop squeezing is real squeezing to an in-loop atom

Electro-optical feedback can produce an in-loop photocurrent with arbitrarily low noise. This is not regarded as evidence of `real' squeezing because squeezed light cannot be extracted from the loop using a linear beam splitter. Here I show that illuminating an atom (which is a nonlinear optical element) with `in-loop' squeezed light causes line-narrowing of one quadrature of the atom's fluorescence. This has long been regarded as an effect which can only be produced by squeezing. Experiments on atoms using in-loop squeezing should be much easier than those with conventional sources of squeezed light.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, submitted to PR

Controlling trapping potentials and stray electric fields in a microfabricated ion trap through design and compensation

Recent advances in quantum information processing with trapped ions have demonstrated the need for new ion trap architectures capable of holding and manipulating chains of many (>10) ions. Here we present the design and detailed characterization of a new linear trap, microfabricated with scalable complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) techniques, that is well-suited to this challenge. Forty-four individually controlled DC electrodes provide the many degrees of freedom required to construct anharmonic potential wells, shuttle ions, merge and split ion chains, precisely tune secular mode frequencies, and adjust the orientation of trap axes. Microfabricated capacitors on DC electrodes suppress radio-frequency pickup and excess micromotion, while a top-level ground layer simplifies modeling of electric fields and protects trap structures underneath. A localized aperture in the substrate provides access to the trapping region from an oven below, permitting deterministic loading of particular isotopic/elemental sequences via species-selective photoionization. The shapes of the aperture and radio-frequency electrodes are optimized to minimize perturbation of the trapping pseudopotential. Laboratory experiments verify simulated potentials and characterize trapping lifetimes, stray electric fields, and ion heating rates, while measurement and cancellation of spatially-varying stray electric fields permits the formation of nearly-equally spaced ion chains.Comment: 17 pages (including references), 7 figure