Modally Resolved Fabry-Perot Experiment with Semiconductor Waveguides

Based on the interaction between different spatial modes, semiconductor Bragg-reflection waveguides provide a highly functional platform for non-linear optics. Therefore, the control and engineering of the properties of each spatial mode is essential. Despite the multimodeness of our waveguide, the well-established Fabry-Perot technique for recording fringes in the optical transmission spectrum can successfully be employed for a detailed linear optical characterization when combined with Fourier analysis. A prerequisite for the modal sensitivity is a finely resolved transmission spectrum that is recorded over a broad frequency band. Our results highlight how the features of different spatial modes, such as their loss characteristics and dispersion properties, can be separated from each other allowing their comparison. The mode-resolved measurements are important for optimizing the performance of such multimode waveguides by tailoring the properties of their spatial modes.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure

Quantum entanglement distribution with 810 nm photons through telecom fibers

We demonstrate the distribution of polarization entangled photons of wavelength 810 nm through standard telecom fibers. This technique allows quantum communication protocols to be performed over established fiber infrastructure, and makes use of the smaller and better performing setups available around 800 nm, as compared to those which use telecom wavelengths around 1550 nm. We examine the excitation and subsequent quenching of higher-order spatial modes in telecom fibers up to 6 km in length, and perform a distribution of high quality entanglement (visibility 95.6%). Finally, we demonstrate quantum key distribution using entangled 810 nm photons over a 4.4 km long installed telecom fiber link.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, 1 tabl

W+W−W^+W^- production at hadron colliders in NNLO QCD

Charged gauge boson pair production at the Large Hadron Collider allows detailed probes of the fundamental structure of electroweak interactions. We present precise theoretical predictions for on-shell $W^+W^-$ production that include, for the first time, QCD effects up to next-to-next-to-leading order in perturbation theory. As compared to next-to-leading order, the inclusive $W^+W^-$ cross section is enhanced by 9% at 7 TeV and 12% at 14 TeV. The residual perturbative uncertainty is at the 3% level. The severe contamination of the $W^+W^-$ cross section due to top-quark resonances is discussed in detail. Comparing different definitions of top-free $W^+W^-$ production in the four and five flavour number schemes, we demonstrate that top-quark resonances can be separated from the inclusive $W^+W^-$ cross section without significant loss of theoretical precision.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure

Solving the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen puzzle: the origin of non-locality in Aspect-type experiments

So far no mechanism is known, which could connect the two measurements in an Aspect-type experiment. Here, we suggest such a mechanism, based on the phase of a photon's field during propagation. We show that two polarization measurements are correlated, even if no signal passes from one point of measurement to the other. The non-local connection of a photon pair is the result of its origin at a common source, where the two fields acquire a well defined phase difference. Therefore, it is not actually a non-local effect in any conventional sense. We expect that the model and the detailed analysis it allows will have a major impact on quantum cryptography and quantum computation.Comment: 5 pages 1 figure. Added an analysis of quantum steering. The result is that under certain conditions the experimental result at B can be predicted if the polarization angle and the result at A are known. The paper has been accepted for publication in Frontiers of Physics. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1108.435

Fish schooling as a basis for vertical axis wind turbine farm design

Most wind farms consist of horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWTs) due to the high power coefficient (mechanical power output divided by the power of the free-stream air through the turbine cross-sectional area) of an isolated turbine. However when in close proximity to neighbouring turbines, HAWTs suffer from a reduced power coefficient. In contrast, previous research on vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) suggests that closely-spaced VAWTs may experience only small decreases (or even increases) in an individual turbine's power coefficient when placed in close proximity to neighbours, thus yielding much higher power outputs for a given area of land. A potential flow model of inter-VAWT interactions is developed to investigate the effect of changes in VAWT spatial arrangement on the array performance coefficient, which compares the expected average power coefficient of turbines in an array to a spatially-isolated turbine. A geometric arrangement based on the configuration of shed vortices in the wake of schooling fish is shown to significantly increase the array performance coefficient based upon an array of 16x16 wind turbines. Results suggest increases in power output of over one order of magnitude for a given area of land as compared to HAWTs.Comment: Submitted for publication in BioInspiration and Biomimetics. Note: The technology described in this paper is protected under both US and international pending patents filed by the California Institute of Technolog

Resolving the molecular architecture of the photoreceptor active zone with 3D-MINFLUX

Cells assemble macromolecular complexes into scaffoldings that serve as substrates for catalytic processes. Years of molecular neurobiology research indicate that neurotransmission depends on such optimization strategies. However, the molecular topography of the presynaptic active zone (AZ), where transmitter is released upon synaptic vesicle (SV) fusion, remains to be visualized. Therefore, we implemented MINFLUX optical nanoscopy to resolve the AZ of rod photoreceptors. This was facilitated by a novel sample immobilization technique that we name heat-assisted rapid dehydration (HARD), wherein a thin layer of rod synaptic terminals (spherules) was transferred onto glass coverslips from fresh retinal slices. Rod ribbon AZs were readily immunolabeled and imaged in 3D with a precision of a few nanometers. Our 3D-MINFLUX results indicate that the SV release site in rods is a molecular complex of bassoon–RIM2–ubMunc13-2–Cav1.4, which repeats longitudinally on both sides of the ribbon

Studying Free-Space Transmission Statistics and Improving Free-Space QKD in the Turbulent Atmosphere

The statistical fluctuations in free-space links in the turbulent atmosphere are important for the distribution of quantum signals. To that end, we first study statistics generated by the turbulent atmosphere in an entanglement based free-space quantum key distribution (QKD) system. Using the insights gained from this analysis, we study the effect of link fluctuations on the security and key generation rate of decoy state QKD concluding that it has minimal effect in the typical operating regimes. We then investigate the novel idea of using these turbulent fluctuations to our advantage in QKD experiments. We implement a signal-to-noise ratio filter (SNRF) in our QKD system which rejects measurements during periods of low transmission efficiency, where the measured quantum bit error rate (QBER) is temporarily elevated. Using this, we increase the total secret key generated by the system from 78,009 bits to 97,678 bits, representing an increase of 25.2% in the final secure key rate, generated from the same raw signals. Lastly, we present simulations of a QKD exchange with an orbiting LEO satellite and show that an SNRF will be extremely useful in such a situation, allowing many more passes to extract a secret key than would otherwise be possible.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure