2,405 research outputs found
Impedance-matched cavity quantum memory
We consider an atomic frequency comb based quantum memory inside an
asymmetric optical cavity. In this configuration it is possible to absorb the
input light completely in a system with an effective optical depth of one,
provided that the absorption per cavity round trip exactly matches the
transmission of the coupling mirror ("impedance matching"). We show that the
impedance matching results in a readout efficiency only limited by irreversible
atomic dephasing, whose effect can be made very small in systems with large
inhomogeneous broadening. Our proposal opens up an attractive route towards
quantum memories with close to unit efficiency.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure
Temporally multiplexed quantum repeaters with atomic gases
We propose a temporally multiplexed version of the Duan-Lukin-Cirac-Zoller
(DLCZ) quantum repeater protocol using controlled inhomogeneous spin broadening
in atomic gases. A first analysis suggests that the advantage of multiplexing
is negated by noise due to spin wave excitations corresponding to unobserved
directions of Stokes photon emission. However, this problem can be overcome
with the help of a moderate-finesse cavity which is in resonance with Stokes
photons, but invisible to the anti-Stokes photons. Our proposal promises
greatly enhanced quantum repeater performance with atomic gases.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur
Spectral noise in quantum frequency down-conversion from the visible to the telecommunication C-band
We report a detailed study of the noise properties of a visible-to-telecom
photon frequency converter based on difference frequency generation (DFG). The
device converts 580 nm photons to 1541 nm using a strong pump laser at 930 nm,
in a periodically poled lithium niobate ridge waveguide. The converter reaches
a maximum device efficiency of 46 % (internal efficiency of 67 %) at a pump
power of 250 mW. The noise produced by the pump laser is investigated in detail
by recording the noise spectra both in the telecom and visible regimes, and
measuring the power dependence of the noise rates. The noise spectrum in the
telecom is very broadband, as expected from previous work on similar DFG
converters. However, we also observe several narrow dips in the telecom
spectrum, with corresponding peaks appearing in the 580 nm noise spectrum.
These features are explained by sum frequency generation of the telecom noise
at wavelengths given by the phase matching condition of different spatial modes
in the waveguide. The proposed noise model is in good agreement with all the
measured data, including the power-dependence of the noise rates, both in the
visible and telecom regime. These results are applicable to the class of DFG
converters where the pump laser wavelength is in between the input and target
wavelength.Comment: 10 page
Multi-mode and long-lived quantum correlations between photons and spins in a crystal
The realization of quantum networks and quantum repeaters remains an
outstanding challenge in quantum communication. These rely on entanglement of
remote matter systems, which in turn requires creation of quantum correlations
between a single photon and a matter system. A practical way to establish such
correlations is via spontaneous Raman scattering in atomic ensembles, known as
the DLCZ scheme. However, time multiplexing is inherently difficult using this
method, which leads to low communication rates even in theory. Moreover, it is
desirable to find solid-state ensembles where such matter-photon correlations
could be generated. Here we demonstrate quantum correlations between a single
photon and a spin excitation in up to 12 temporal modes, in a Eu
doped YSiO crystal, using a novel DLCZ approach that is inherently
multimode. After a storage time of 1 ms, the spin excitation is converted into
a second photon. The quantum correlation of the generated photon pair is
verified by violating a Cauchy - Schwarz inequality. Our results show that
solid-state rare-earth crystals could be used to generate remote multi-mode
entanglement, an important resource for future quantum networks
Single-photon-level optical storage in a solid-state spin-wave memory
A long-lived quantum memory is a firm requirement for implementing a quantum
repeater scheme. Recent progress in solid-state rare-earth-ion-doped systems
justifies their status as very strong candidates for such systems. Nonetheless
an optical memory based on spin-wave storage at the single-photon-level has not
been shown in such a system to date, which is crucial for achieving the long
storage times required for quantum repeaters. In this letter we show that it is
possible to execute a complete atomic frequency comb (AFC) scheme, including
spin-wave storage, with weak coherent pulses of photons
per pulse. We discuss in detail the experimental steps required to obtain this
result and demonstrate the coherence of a stored time-bin pulse. We show a
noise level of photons per mode during storage, this
relatively low-noise level paves the way for future quantum optics experiments
using spin-waves in rare-earth-doped crystals
Mapping multiple photonic qubits into and out of one solid-state atomic ensemble
The future challenge of quantum communication are scalable quantum networks,
which require coherent and reversible mapping of photonic qubits onto
stationary atomic systems (quantum memories). A crucial requirement for
realistic networks is the ability to efficiently store multiple qubits in one
quantum memory. Here we demonstrate coherent and reversible mapping of 64
optical modes at the single photon level in the time domain onto one
solid-state ensemble of rare-earth ions. Our light-matter interface is based on
a high-bandwidth (100 MHz) atomic frequency comb, with a pre-determined storage
time of 1 microseconds. We can then encode many qubits in short <10 ns temporal
modes (time-bin qubits). We show the good coherence of the mapping by
simultaneously storing and analyzing multiple time-bin qubits.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures + Supplementary materia
Analysis of a quantum memory for photons based on controlled reversible inhomogeneous broadening
We present a detailed analysis of a quantum memory for photons based on
controlled and reversible inhomogeneous broadening (CRIB). The explicit
solution of the equations of motion is obtained in the weak excitation regime,
making it possible to gain insight into the dependence of the memory efficiency
on the optical depth, and on the width and shape of the atomic spectral
distributions. We also study a simplified memory protocol which does not
require any optical control fields.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures (Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. A
Atomic frequency comb memory with spin wave storage in 153Eu3+:Y2SiO5
153Eu3+:Y2SiO5 is a very attractive candidate for a long lived, multimode
quantum memory due to the long spin coherence time (~15 ms), the relatively
large hyperfine splitting (100 MHz) and the narrow optical homogeneous
linewidth (~100 Hz). Here we show an atomic frequency comb memory with spin
wave storage in a promising material 153Eu3+:Y2SiO5, reaching storage times
slightly beyond 10 {\mu}s. We analyze the efficiency of the storage process and
discuss ways of improving it. We also measure the inhomogeneous spin linewidth
of 153Eu3+:Y2SiO5, which we find to be 69 \pm 3 kHz. These results represent a
further step towards realising a long lived multi mode solid state quantum
memory.Comment: 7 pages and 7 figure
Electric control of collective atomic coherence in an Erbium doped solid
We demonstrate fast and accurate control of the evolution of collective
atomic coherences in an Erbium doped solid using external electric fields. This
is achieved by controlling the inhomogeneous broadening of Erbium ions emitting
at 1536 nm using an electric field gradient and the linear Stark effect. The
manipulation of atomic coherence is characterized with the collective
spontaneous emission (optical free induction decay) emitted by the sample after
an optical excitation, which does not require any previous preparation of the
atoms. We show that controlled dephasing and rephasing of the atoms by the
electric field result in collapses and revivals of the optical free induction
decay. Our results show that the use of external electric fields does not
introduce any substantial additional decoherence and enables the manipulation
of collective atomic coherence with a very high degree of precision on the time
scale of tens of ns. This provides an interesting resource for photonic quantum
state storage and quantum state manipulation.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure
- …