On the amplification of optical signal in structures with quantum dots

We consider a possibility to use structures with quantum dots as media for the amplification of a weak optical signal. It is shown that in such structures a transition from absorption to amplification is possible without creation of the population inversion.     

Second-harmonic generation of semiconductor quantum dots studied by near-field optical microscopy

We present a theoretical study of optical second-harmonic generation(SHG) of symmetric semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) excited by the near field of the tip in a near-field scanning optical microscope. We show that the usual optical transition selection rules for the SH nonlinear interaction between the tip field and the QD are broken when the tip is scanned over the QD, because the tip field varies rapidly over the QD domain. It is also demonstrated that the tip-position dependence of the SH signal essentially maps the spatial distribution of the tip field.     

Entangled-photons generation with quantum dots

Entanglement between particles is a crucial resource in quantum information processing, an important example of which is the exploitation of entangled photons in quantum communication protocols. Among the different available sources of entangled photons, semiconductor quantum dots(QDs) excel owing to their deterministic emission properties, potential for electrical injections, and direct compatibility with semiconductor manufacturing techniques. Despite the great promises,QD-based sources are far from being ideal. In particular, such sources present several critical issues, which require the overcoming of challenges pertaining to spectral tunability, entanglement fidelity, photon indistinguishability and brightness.In this article, we will discuss the potential solutions to these problems and review the recent progress in the field.     

Density of states in randomly shaped graphene quantum dots

By numerical diagonalization of honeycomb-lattice tight-binding Hamiltonian we calculate the density of state (DOS) of irregularly shaped graphene quantum dots fabricated in the form of graphene nano-flakes. The finite-size electron confinement and the edge states result in the central peak of DOS that is located at the zero-energy Dirac point. The amplitude and width of the peak are provided by the form of the graphene cluster, but no regular correlation with its shape was found.     

Third-harmonic generation in cubical quantum dots

Third-harmonic generation (THG) for cubical quantum dots (CQDs) with an applied electric field is theoretically investigated in the framework of the compact-density-matrix approach and an iterative method. The confined wave functions and energies of electrons in the CQDs are calculated in the effective-mass approximation. Numerical calculations are presented for typical GaAs/AlAs CQDs. The results demonstrate that the THG strongly depends on the length of the CQDs and the magnitude of the electric field. Also, the peaks shift towards the higher energy region with increasing electric field.     

Stimulated and spontaneous optical generation of electron spin coherence in charged GaAs quantum dots

We report on the coherent optical excitation of electron spin polarization in the ground state of charged GaAs quantum dots via an intermediate charged exciton (trion) state. Coherent optical fields are used for the creation and detection of the Raman spin coherence between the spin ground states of the charged quantum dot. The measured spin decoherence time, which is likely limited by the nature of the spin ensemble, approaches 10 ns at zero field. We also show that the Raman spin coherence in the quantum beats is caused not only by the usual stimulated Raman interaction but also by simultaneous spontaneous radiative decay of either excited trion state to a coherent combination of the two spin states.     

Large-signal modulation in distributed feedback quantum cascade lasers for coherent multiharmonic signal generation

In this Letter, an experimental analysis for coherent multiharmonic signal generation in quantum cascade lasers is presented. The underlying principle relies on the direct modulation of the laser with a large sinusoidal wave to drive the laser above and below threshold. This generates a multiharmonic optical signal in the frequency domain as the device is forced to respond in a nonlinear fashion. The impact of the modulation parameters is assessed in the resultant optical spectrum of a continuous-wave distributed feedback quantum cascade laser. Despite not creating pulses due to the ultrafast dynamics of the laser, the results reveal that a comb structure with uniform line spacing and high phase correlation between teeth can be straightforwardly generated.     

Terahertz wave generation in coupled quantum dots

Based on coupled quantum dots,we present an interesting optical effect in a four-level loop coupled system.Both the two upper levels and the two lower levels are designed to be almost degenerate,which induces a considerable dipole moment.The terahertz wave is obtained from the low-frequency component of the photon emission spectrum.The frequency of the terahertz wave can be controlled by tuning the energy levels via designing the nanostructure appropriately or tuning the driving laser field.A terahertz wave with adjustable frequency and considerable intensity(100 times higher than that of the Rayleigh line) can be obtained.It provides an effective scheme for a terahertz source.     

The randomly fluctuating impurity strength initiated excitation in doped quantum dots

We investigate the excitation behavior of a repulsive impurity doped quantum dot under the influence of randomly fluctuating dopant potential. We have considered Gaussian impurity centers doped at different locations. The investigation reveals the interplay between dopant location and dopant’s spatial stretch in modulating the excitation pattern. Maximization in the excitation rate has been observed as a function of fluctuating dopant strength owing to the conflict between opposing influences that promote and hinder excitation.     

Nonlinear optical rectification in cubical quantum dots

The optical rectification (OR) coefficient for cubical quantum dots (CQDs), with an applied electric field is theoretically investigated in the framework of the compact-density-matrix approach and an iterative method. The confined wave functions and energies of electrons in the CQDs are calculated in the effective-mass approximation. Numerical calculations are presented for typical GaAs/AlAs CQDs. The results show that the calculation for OR coefficient in the CQDs system can reach a magnitude of , two orders higher than that in the spherical quantum dots system. The OR coefficient strongly depends on the length of CQDs and the magnitude of electric field. And the peak shifts to the aspect of high energy when considering the electric field.     

Fabrication and optical properties of quantum dots and wires

We describe photoluminescence measurements made on mesa geometry quantum dots and wires with exposed side walls fabricated by laterally patterning undoped GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells using electron beam lithography and dry etching. At low temperature the photoluminescence efficiency of many but not all of the GaAs quantum dot arrays scales with the volume of quantum well material down to lateral dimensions of 50nm. This behaviour contrasts with that found in wires produced at the same time where the intensity falls off rapidly with decreasing wire width for dimensions below 500nm but is recovered by overgrowth with indium tin oxide, possibly as a result of strain. Narrow overgrown wires exhibit anisotropy in polarized excitation spectra which is discussed in relation to strain and lateral confinement effects.     

High-speed optical time-division-multiplexed signal generation

Recent progress in optical time-division-multiplexed (OTDM) signal generation technologies is reviewed. Optical pulse timing control, multiplexing using integrated lightwave circuits, and all-optical regularization are presented, and the possibility of over 100 Gbit/s OTDM signal generation is discussed.     

The generation of optical duobinary signal using electroabsorption modulator for optical access networks

We generate the duobinary signal by utilizing the intensity modulation characteristic of the electroabsorption modulator and the phase characteristic of phase shifter for the high-speed transmission system. In addition, compared to those commercial 10 Gbps OOK modulators, lower cost, better performances and easier integration can be achieved by using these duobinary modulators.     

Spectral and temporal Bloch oscillations in optical fibres

We report a detailed analysis of experimental parameters and fundamental mechanisms contributing to the strong nonlinear scattering of femtosecond and short picosecond laser pulses (50–6000 fs) at focusing in ambient air and protecting gases. The experimental conditions under consideration are typical for a variety of applications: micromachining of metals and dielectrics, high power laser exposure of targets. Such scattering, being the most noticeable manifestation of the complex phenomenon of conical emission in the focusing geometry, puts fundamental limitations to the incident power of precision laser targeting, restricting in this way potential productivity of micromachining in this pulse width range. The phenomena analyzed here are: ionization, the optical Kerr effect, the distortion of spectra via self-phase modulation, and the refractive ability of microplasma, namely the scattering. Characteristics of the last were investigated with respect to the incident wavelength and pulse width, for focusing of Gaussian and flat-top beams of different diameters. The obtained extensive data allowed us to trace the clue trends and relationships of this phenomenon and to find several ways to reduce or even eliminate the scattering in a broad range of the incident energies.     

Valley-based noise-resistant quantum computation using Si quantum dots

We devise a platform for noise-resistant quantum computing using the valley degree of freedom of Si quantum dots. The qubit is encoded in two polarized (1,1) spin-triplet states with different valley compositions in a double quantum dot, with a Zeeman field enabling unambiguous initialization. A top gate gives a difference in the valley splitting between the dots, allowing controllable interdot tunneling between opposite valley eigenstates, which enables one-qubit rotations. Two-qubit operations rely on a stripline resonator, and readout on charge sensing. Sensitivity to charge and spin fluctuations is determined by intervalley processes and is greatly reduced as compared to conventional spin and charge qubits. We describe a valley echo for further noise suppression.     

Magnetic and optical properties of self-organized InMnAs quantum dots

Ten layers of self-assembled InMnAs quantum dots with InGaAs barrier were grown on high resistivity (1 0 0) p-type GaAs substrates by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). The presence of ferromagnetic structure was confirmed in the InMnAs diluted magnetic quantum dots. The ten layers of self-assembled InMnAs quantum dots were found to be semiconducting, and have ferromagnetic ordering with a Curie temperature, T_C=80 K. It is likely that the ferromagnetic exchange coupling of sample with T_C=80 K is hole mediated resulting in Mn substituting In and is due to the bound magnetic polarons co-existing in the system. PL emission spectra of InMnAs samples grown at temperature of 275, 260 and 240 °C show that the interband transition peak centered at 1.31 eV coming from the InMnAs quantum dot blueshifts because of the strong confinement effects with increasing growth temperature.     

Carrier-diffusion-limited remote optical addressing of single quantum dots

We present a scheme for remotely addressing single quantum dots (QDs) by means of near-field optical microscopy that simply makes use of the polarization of light. A structure containing self-assembled CdTe QDs is covered with a thin metal film presenting sub-wavelength holes. When the optical tip is positioned some distance away from a hole, surface plasmons in the metal coating are generated which, by turning the polarization plane of the excitation light, transfer the excitation towards a chosen hole and induce emission from the underlying dots. In addition, our procedure gives valuable insight into the diffusion of photo-excited carriers in the QD plane that can put limits to the addressing scheme.     

An optical fiber glass containing PbSe quantum dots

An optical fiber material, sodium-aluminum-borosilicate glass doped with PbSe quantum dots (QDs) is synthesized by a high-temperature melting method. Crystallization, size distribution and absorption-photoluminescence (PL) of this material are observed by XRD, TEM, and spectrometer respectively. The obtained results indicate that the glass contains QDs in diameter of 6-13 nm depending on the heat-treatment temperature and with a higher doped concentration than those available. It shows an enhanced PL, widened FWHM (275-808 nm), obvious Stokes shift (20-110 nm), with the PL peak wavelength located within 1676-2757 nm depending on the size of QD. The glass is fabricated into an optical fiber in diameter of 10-70 μm and length of 1 m, with pliability and ductility similar to usual SiO₂ fibers. It can be easily fused and spliced with SiO₂ fibers due to a small difference of melting point between them. Characterized by high doped concentration and broad FWHM, this study suggests that the glass can be applied to designing novel broadband fiber amplifiers working in C-L waveband.