Currently proposed architectures for long-distance quantum communication rely
on networks of quantum processors connected by optical communications channels
[1,2]. The key resource for such networks is the entanglement of matter-based
quantum systems with quantum optical fields for information transmission. The
optical interaction bandwidth of these material systems is a tiny fraction of
that available for optical communication, and the temporal shape of the quantum
optical output pulse is often poorly suited for long-distance transmission.
Here we demonstrate that nonlinear mixing of a quantum light pulse with a
spectrally tailored classical field can compress the quantum pulse by more than
a factor of 100 and flexibly reshape its temporal waveform, while preserving
all quantum properties, including entanglement. Waveform conversion can be used
with heralded arrays of quantum light emitters to enable quantum communication
at the full data rate of optical telecommunications.Comment: submitte
