Entanglement-induced collective many-body interference.

Entanglement and interference are both hallmark effects of quantum physics. Particularly rich dynamics arise when multiple (at least partially) indistinguishable particles are subjected to either of these phenomena. By combining both entanglement and many-particle interference, we propose an interferometric setting through which N-particle interference can be observed, while any interference of lower orders is strictly suppressed. We experimentally demonstrate this effect in a four-photon interferometer, where the interference is nonlocal, in principle, as only pairs of photons interfere at two separate and independent beam splitters. A joint detection of all four photons identifies a high-visibility interference pattern varying as a function of their collective four-particle phase, a genuine four-body property.

Time-bin entanglement at telecom wavelengths from a hybrid photonic integrated circuit.

Mass-deployable implementations for quantum communication require compact, reliable, and low-cost hardware solutions for photon generation, control and analysis. We present a fiber-pigtailed hybrid photonic circuit comprising nonlinear waveguides for photon-pair generation and a polymer interposer reaching 68 dB of pump suppression and photon separation based on a polarizing beam splitter with > 25 dB polarization extinction ratio. The optical stability of the hybrid assembly enhances the quality of the entanglement, and the efficient background suppression and photon routing further reduce accidental coincidences. We thus achieve a 96 - 8 + 3 % concurrence and a 96 - 5 + 2 % fidelity to a Bell state. The generated telecom-wavelength, time-bin entangled photon pairs are ideally suited for distributing Bell pairs over fiber networks with low dispersion.

SUPER Scheme in Action: Experimental Demonstration of Red-Detuned Excitation of a Quantum Emitter.

The quest for the perfect single-photon source includes finding the optimal protocol for exciting the quantum emitter. Coherent optical excitation was, up until now, achieved by tuning the laser pulses to the transition frequency of the emitter, either directly or in average. Recently, it was theoretically discovered that an excitation with two red-detuned pulses is also possible where neither of which would yield a significant upper-level population individually. We show that the so-called swing-up of quantum emitter population (SUPER) scheme can be implemented experimentally with similar properties to existing schemes by precise amplitude shaping of a broadband pulse. Because of its truly off-resonant nature, this scheme has the prospect of powering high-purity photon sources with superior photon count rate.

Hyperentanglement of Photons Emitted by a Quantum Dot.

A hyperentangled state of light represents a valuable tool capable of reducing the experimental requirements and resource overheads, and it can improve the success rate of quantum information protocols. Here, we report on demonstration of polarization and time-bin hyperentangled photon pairs emitted from a single quantum dot. We achieved this result by applying resonant and coherent excitation on a quantum dot system with marginal fine structure splitting. Our results yield fidelities to the maximally entangled state of 0.81(6) and 0.87(4) in polarization and time bin, respectively.

Totally Destructive Many-Particle Interference.

In a general, multimode scattering setup, we show how the permutation symmetry of a many-particle input state determines those scattering unitaries that exhibit strictly suppressed many-particle transition events. We formulate purely algebraic suppression laws that identify these events and show that the many-particle interference at their origin is robust under weak disorder and imperfect indistinguishability of the interfering particles. Finally, we demonstrate that all suppression laws so far described in the literature are embedded in the general framework that we here introduce.

A solid state source of photon triplets based on quantum dot molecules.

Producing advanced quantum states of light is a priority in quantum information technologies. In this context, experimental realizations of multipartite photon states would enable improved tests of the foundations of quantum mechanics as well as implementations of complex quantum optical networks and protocols. It is favourable to directly generate these states using solid state systems, for simpler handling and the promise of reversible transfer of quantum information between stationary and flying qubits. Here we use the ground states of two optically active coupled quantum dots to directly produce photon triplets. The formation of a triexciton in these ground states leads to a triple cascade recombination and sequential emission of three photons with strong correlations. We record 65.62 photon triplets per minute under continuous-wave pumping, surpassing rates of earlier reported sources. Our structure and data pave the way towards implementing multipartite photon entanglement and multi-qubit readout schemes in solid state devices.

Observation of Genuine Three-Photon Interference.

Multiparticle quantum interference is critical for our understanding and exploitation of quantum information, and for fundamental tests of quantum mechanics. A remarkable example of multi-partite correlations is exhibited by the Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) state. In a GHZ state, three particles are correlated while no pairwise correlation is found. The manifestation of these strong correlations in an interferometric setting has been studied theoretically since 1990 but no three-photon GHZ interferometer has been realized experimentally. Here we demonstrate three-photon interference that does not originate from two-photon or single photon interference. We observe phase-dependent variation of three-photon coincidences with (92.7±4.6)% visibility in a generalized Franson interferometer using energy-time entangled photon triplets. The demonstration of these strong correlations in an interferometric setting provides new avenues for multiphoton interferometry, fundamental tests of quantum mechanics, and quantum information applications in higher dimensions.

Effects of photo-neutralization on the emission properties of quantum dots.

In this paper we investigate the coherence properties of a quantum dot used as photon pair source, under two-photon resonant excitation in combination with an additional photo-neutralization laser. The photo-neutralization increases the efficiency of the excitation process and thus, the brightness of the source, by a factor of approximately 1.5 for biexciton-exciton pairs. This enhancement does not degrade the relevant coherences in the system; neither the single photon coherence time, nor the coherence of the excitation process.

Universal Sign Control of Coupling in Tight-Binding Lattices.

We present a method of locally inverting the sign of the coupling term in tight-binding systems, by means of inserting a judiciously designed ancillary site and eigenmode matching of the resulting vertex triplet. Our technique can be universally applied to all lattice configurations, as long as the individual sites can be detuned. We experimentally verify this method in laser-written photonic lattices and confirm both the magnitude and the sign of the coupling by interferometric measurements. Based on these findings, we demonstrate how such universal sign-flipped coupling links can be embedded into extended lattice structures to impose a Z_{2}-gauge transformation. This opens a new avenue for investigations on topological effects arising from magnetic fields with aperiodic flux patterns or in disordered systems.

Implementation of quantum and classical discrete fractional Fourier transforms.

Fourier transforms, integer and fractional, are ubiquitous mathematical tools in basic and applied science. Certainly, since the ordinary Fourier transform is merely a particular case of a continuous set of fractional Fourier domains, every property and application of the ordinary Fourier transform becomes a special case of the fractional Fourier transform. Despite the great practical importance of the discrete Fourier transform, implementation of fractional orders of the corresponding discrete operation has been elusive. Here we report classical and quantum optical realizations of the discrete fractional Fourier transform. In the context of classical optics, we implement discrete fractional Fourier transforms of exemplary wave functions and experimentally demonstrate the shift theorem. Moreover, we apply this approach in the quantum realm to Fourier transform separable and path-entangled biphoton wave functions. The proposed approach is versatile and could find applications in various fields where Fourier transforms are essential tools.

Quantum non-Gaussian Depth of Single-Photon States.

We introduce and experimentally explore the concept of the non-Gaussian depth of single-photon states with a positive Wigner function. The depth measures the robustness of a single-photon state against optical losses. The directly witnessed quantum non-Gaussianity withstands significant attenuation, exhibiting a depth of 18 dB, while the nonclassicality remains unchanged. Quantum non-Gaussian depth is an experimentally approachable quantity that is much more robust than the negativity of the Wigner function. Furthermore, we use it to reveal significant differences between otherwise strongly nonclassical single-photon sources.

Rayleigh scattering in coupled microcavities: theory.

In this paper we theoretically study how structural disorder in coupled semiconductor heterostructures influences single-particle scattering events that would otherwise be forbidden by symmetry. We extend the model of Savona (2007 J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 19 295208) to describe Rayleigh scattering in coupled planar microcavity structures, and find that effective filter theories can be ruled out.

Polarization entangled photons from quantum dots embedded in nanowires.

In this Letter, we present entanglement generated from a novel structure: a single InAsP quantum dot embedded in an InP nanowire. These structures can grow in a site-controlled way and exhibit high collection efficiency; we detect 0.5 million biexciton counts per second coupled into a single mode fiber with a standard commercial avalanche photo diode. If we correct for the known setup losses and detector efficiency, we get an extraction efficiency of 15(3) %. For the measured polarization entanglement, we observe a fidelity of 0.76(2) to a reference maximally entangled state as well as a concurrence of 0.57(6).

Measurement and modeling of the nonlinearity of photovoltaic and Geiger-mode photodiodes.

While in most cases the absolute accuracy, resolution, and noise floor are the only relevant specifications for the dynamic range of a photodetector, there are experiments for which the linearity plays a more important role than the former three properties. In these experiments nonlinearity can lead to systematic errors. In our work we present a modern implementation of the well-known superposition method and apply it to two different types of photodetectors.

Time-bin entangled photons from a quantum dot.

Long-distance quantum communication is one of the prime goals in the field of quantum information science. With information encoded in the quantum state of photons, existing telecommunication fibre networks can be effectively used as a transport medium. To achieve this goal, a source of robust entangled single-photon pairs is required. Here we report the realization of a source of time-bin entangled photon pairs utilizing the biexciton-exciton cascade in a III/V self-assembled quantum dot. We analyse the generated photon pairs by an inherently phase-stable interferometry technique, facilitating uninterrupted long integration times. We confirm the entanglement by performing quantum state tomography of the emitted photons, which yields a fidelity of 0.69(3) and a concurrence of 0.41(6) for our realization of time-energy entanglement from a single quantum emitter.

Efficiency vs. multi-photon contribution test for quantum dots.

The development of linear quantum computing within integrated circuits demands high quality semiconductor single photon sources. In particular, for a reliable single photon source it is not sufficient to have a low multi-photon component, but also to possess high efficiency. We investigate the photon statistics of the emission from a single quantum dot with a method that is able to sensitively detect the trade-off between the efficiency and the multi-photon contribution. Our measurements show, that the light emitted from the quantum dot when it is resonantly excited possess a very low multi-photon content. Additionally, we demonstrated, for the first time, the non-Gaussian nature of the quantum state emitted from a single quantum dot.

Inherent polarization entanglement generated from a monolithic semiconductor chip.

Creating miniature chip scale implementations of optical quantum information protocols is a dream for many in the quantum optics community. This is largely because of the promise of stability and scalability. Here we present a monolithically integratable chip architecture upon which is built a photonic device primitive called a Bragg reflection waveguide (BRW). Implemented in gallium arsenide, we show that, via the process of spontaneous parametric down conversion, the BRW is capable of directly producing polarization entangled photons without additional path difference compensation, spectral filtering or post-selection. After splitting the twin-photons immediately after they emerge from the chip, we perform a variety of correlation tests on the photon pairs and show non-classical behaviour in their polarization. Combined with the BRW's versatile architecture our results signify the BRW design as a serious contender on which to build large scale implementations of optical quantum processing devices.

Deterministic photon pairs and coherent optical control of a single quantum dot.

The strong confinement of semiconductor excitons in a quantum dot gives rise to atomlike behavior. The full benefit of such a structure is best observed in resonant excitation where the excited state can be deterministically populated and coherently manipulated. Because of the large refractive index and device geometry it remains challenging to observe resonantly excited emission that is free from laser scattering in III/V self-assembled quantum dots. Here we exploit the biexciton binding energy to create an extremely clean single photon source via two-photon resonant excitation of an InAs/GaAs quantum dot. We observe complete suppression of the excitation laser and multiphoton emissions. Additionally, we perform full coherent control of the ground-biexciton state qubit and observe an extended coherence time using an all-optical echo technique. The deterministic coherent photon pair creation makes this system suitable for the generation of time-bin entanglement and experiments on the interaction of photons from dissimilar sources.

Measurement and modification of biexciton-exciton time correlations.

Photons which are generated in a two-photon cascade process have an underlying time correlation since the spontaneous emission of the upper level populates the intermediate state. This correlation leads to a reduction of the purity of the photon emitted from the intermediate state. Here we characterize this time correlation for the biexciton-exciton cascade of an InAs/GaAs quantum dot. We show that the correlation can be reduced by tuning the biexciton transition in resonance to a planar distributed Bragg reflector cavity. The enhanced and inhibited emission into the cavity accelerates the biexciton emission and slows down the exciton emission thus reduces the correlation and increases the purity of the exciton photon. This is essential for schemes like creating time-bin entangled photon pairs from quantum dot systems.

Pulsed Sagnac source of polarization entangled photon pairs.

Photonic quantum information experiments demand bright and highly entangled photon pair sources. The combination of periodic poling and collinear excitation geometry allows the use of considerably longer crystals for parametric down-conversion. We demonstrate a picosecond-pulsed laser pumped source of high quality polarization entangled photon pairs. The phase of the output biphoton state is affected by the relative phase of the two-color interferometer and the phase of the nonlinearly interacting Gaussian beams. We measure the influence of these onto the phase of the output state. The presented source is a promising candidate for a compact, semiconductor laser driven source of entangled photon pairs.