Temporal coherence of photons emitted by single nitrogen-vacancy defect centers in diamond using optical Rabi-oscillations

Photon interference among distant quantum emitters is a promising method to generate large scale quantum networks. Interference is best achieved when photons show long coherence times. For the nitrogen-vacancy defect center in diamond we measure the coherence times of photons via optically induced Rabi oscillations. Experiments reveal a close to Fourier-transform (i.e., lifetime) limited width of photons emitted even when averaged over minutes. The projected contrast of two-photon interference (0.8) is high enough to envisage applications in quantum information processing. We report 12 and 7.8 ns excited state lifetimes depending on the spin state of the defect.     

多光子相长干涉解释光子的广义聚束效应

光的聚束效应的发现是量子光学的重要里程碑.对其进行合理解释的努力,促进了量子光学理论与技术的大发展,使量子光学迅速发展和完善起来.现在一般认为,光场二阶相干所体现的聚束效应的物理本质是双光子干涉.本文发现,在高阶相干中有类似的广义聚束效应,这种广义聚束效应也可以用光子相长干涉解释.而且在一些典型的光路中,Ⅳ个光子参与的干涉,可以使这种广义聚束效应的增强因子达到N!.     

Fiber-based source of photon pairs at telecom band with high temporal coherence and brightness for quantum information processing

We experimentally demonstrate a bright pulsed source of correlated photon pairs at the 1550 nm telecom band by pumping 300 m dispersion-shifted fiber with a 4 ps pulse train. We investigate the coherence property of the source by measuring the second-order intensity correlation function g(2) of individual signal (idler) photons. A preliminary Hong-Ou-Mandel-type two-photon interference experiment with two such sources confirms the high temporal and spatial coherence of the source. The source is suitable for multiphoton quantum interference of independent sources, which is required in quantum information processing.     

Quantum beat of two single photons

The interference of two single photons impinging on a beam splitter is measured in a time-resolved manner. Using long photons of different frequencies emitted from an atom-cavity system, a quantum beat with a visibility close to 100% is observed in the correlation between the photodetections at the output ports of the beam splitter. The time dependence of the beat amplitude reflects the coherence properties of the photons. Most remarkably, simultaneous photodetections are never observed, so that a temporal filter allows one to obtain perfect two-photon coalescence even for nonperfect photons.     

Robust creation of entanglement between remote memory qubits

In this Letter we propose a robust quantum repeater architecture building on the original Duan-Lukin-Cirac-Zoller (DLCZ) protocol [L.-M. Duan, M. D. Lukin, J. I. Cirac, and P. Zoller, Nature (London) 414, 413 (2001)10.1038/35106500]. The architecture is based on two-photon Hong-Ou-Mandel-type interference which relaxes the long-distance stability requirements by about 7 orders of magnitude, from subwavelength for the single photon interference required by DLCZ to the coherence length of the photons. Our proposal provides an exciting possibility for robust and realistic long-distance quantum communication.     

Effects of Spontaneously Generated Coherence on Intensity-Intensity Correlation in a Driven Y-Type Atom

In this paper, we investigate the spontaneously generated coherence (SGC) effects on the fluorescence fields intensity-intensity correlation in a resonant driven four-level Y-type atomic system. By using a strong control field, in the absense of SGC effects, strong correlation and anticorrelation
fluorescence photons can be produced from two ladder transitions in this system respectively. However, in the presence of SGC effects, the fluorescence fields correlation properties are reversed for the two transitions. The above phenomena can be traced to the quantum destructive or constructive interference in terms of dressed states.     

几类相干态的量子保真度

在坐标表象下,研究了几类相干态的量子保真度,对于相干态,我们给出了量子保真度的解析表达式,考查了谐振子特征长度 ,平移距离 对保真度的影响;对于相干态 与 的叠加态,考查了初态量子干涉对量子保真度的影响,结论表明：量子保真度呈周期性;与相干态的量子保真度比较而言,当谐振子处于第二类相干态时,量子干涉能抑制量子态失真,当谐振子处于第三类相干态时,量子干涉能抑制量子态失真,也可能加大量子态失真.     

Postselective two-photon interference from a continuous nonclassical stream of photons emitted by a quantum dot

We report an electrically driven semiconductor single-photon source capable of emitting photons with a coherence time of up to 400 ps under fixed bias. It is shown that increasing the injection current causes the coherence time to reduce, and this effect is well explained by the fast modulation of a fluctuating environment. Hong-Ou-Mandel-type two-photon interference using a Mach-Zehnder interferometer is demonstrated using this source to test the indistinguishability of individual photons by postselecting events where two photons collide at a beam splitter. Finally, we consider how improvements in our detection system can be used to achieve a higher interference visibility.     

耗散腔中两二能级原子态的自旋压缩,量子Fisher信息和最大自旋涨落

在能量耗散腔中,原子用泡利算符描述,光场用相干态描述,运用密度矩阵理论,得到了两二能级原子密度矩阵元的演化规律,分析了与单模辐射场作用过程中原子态的自旋压缩、量子Fisher信息和最大自旋涨落.结果表明:自旋压缩,大于 的最大自旋涨落可以作为量子纠缠的充分必要判据.自旋压缩, 大于 的最大自旋涨落和量子纠缠,它们互相等价.大于1的Fisher信息与它们之间没有等价关系,但可以作为自旋压缩和量子纠缠的充分判据.     

耗散腔中两二能级原子态的自旋压缩量子Fisher信息和最大自旋涨落

在能量耗散腔中,原子用泡利算符描述,光场用相干态描述,运用密度矩阵理论,得到了两二能级原子密度矩阵元的演化规律,分析了与单模辐射场作用过程中原子态的自旋压缩、量子Fisher信息和最大自旋涨落.结果表明:自旋压缩,大于1/2的最大自旋涨落可以作为量子纠缠的充分必要判据.自旋压缩,大于1/2的最大自旋涨落和量子纠缠,它们互相等价.大于1的Fisher信息与它们之间没有等价关系,但可以作为自旋压缩和量子纠缠的充分判据.     

Coalescence of single photons emitted by disparate single-photon sources: the example of InAs quantum dots and parametric down-conversion sources

Single photons produced by fundamentally dissimilar physical processes will in general not be indistinguishable. We show how photons produced from a quantum dot and by parametric down-conversion in a nonlinear crystal can be manipulated to be indistinguishable. The measured two-photon coalescence probability is 16%, and is limited by quantum-dot decoherence. Temporal filtering to the quantum-dot coherence time and accounting for detector time response increases this to 61% while retaining 25% of the events. This technique can connect different elements in a scalable quantum network.     

广义量子干涉原理及对偶量子计算机

我们综述最近提出的广义量子干涉原理及其在量子计算中的应用.广义量子干涉原理是对狄拉克单光子干涉原理的具体化和多光子推广,不但对像原子这样的紧致的量子力学体系适用,而且适用于几个独立的光子这样的松散量子体系.利用广义量子干涉原理,许多引起争议的问题都可以得到合理的解释,例如两个以上的单光子的干涉等问题.从广义量子干涉原理来看双光子或者多光子的干涉就是双光子和双光子自身的干涉,多光子和多光子自身的干涉.广义量子干涉原理可以利用多组分量子力学体系的广义Feynman积分表示,可以定量地计算.基于这个原理我们提出了一种新的计算机,波粒二象计算机,又称为对偶计算机.在原理上对偶计算机超越了经典的计算机和现有的量子计算机.在对偶计算机中,计算机的波函数被分成若干个子波并使其通过不同的路径,在这些路径上进行不同的量子计算门操作,而后这些子波重新合并产生干涉从而给出计算结果.除了量子计算机具有的量子平行性外,对偶计算机还具有对偶平行性.形象地说,对偶计算机是一台通过多狭缝的运动着的量子计算机,在不同的狭缝进行不同的量子操作,实现对偶平行性.目前已经建立起严格的对偶量子计算机的数学理论,为今后的进一步发展打下了基础.本文着重从物理的角度去综述广义量子干涉原理和对偶计算机.现在的研究已经证明,一台d狭缝的n比特的对偶计算机等同与一个n比特+一个d比特(qudit)的普通量子计算机,证明了对偶计算机具有比量子计算机更强大的能力.这样,我们可以使用一台具有n+log<,2>d个比特的普通量子计算机去模拟一个d狭缝的n比特对偶计算机,省去了研制运动量子计算机的巨大的技术上的障碍.我们把这种量子计算机的运行模式称为对偶计算模式,或简称为对偶模式.利用这一联系反过来可以帮助我们理解广义量子干涉原理,因为在量子计算机中一切计算都是普通的量子力学所允许的量子操作,因此广义量子干涉原理就是普通的量子力学体系所允许的原理,而这个原理只是是在多体量子力学体系中才会表现出来.对偶计算机是一种新式的计算机,里面有许多问题期待研究和发展,同时也充满了机会.在对偶计算机中,除了幺正操作外.还可以允许非幺正操作,几乎包括我们可以想到的任何操作,我们称之为对偶门操作或者广义量子门操作.目前这已经引起了数学家的注意,并给出了广义量子门操作的一些数学性质.此外,利用量子计算机和对偶计算机的联系,可以将许多经典计算机的算法移植到量子计算机中,经过改造成为量子算法.由于对偶计算机中的演化是非幺正的,对偶量子计算机将可能在开放量子力学的体系的研究中起到重要的作用.     

Superluminal propagation of evanescent modes as a quantum effect

Contrary to mechanical waves, the two‐slit interference experiment of single photons shows that the behavior of classical electromagnetic waves corresponds to the quantum mechanical one of single photons, which is also different from the quantum‐field‐theory behavior such as the creations and annihilations of photons, the vacuum fluctuations, etc. Owing to a purely quantum effect, quantum tunneling particles including tunneling photons (evanescent modes) can propagate over a spacelike interval. With this picture we conclude that the superluminality of evanescent modes is a quantum mechanical rather than a classical phenomenon.     

Coherence

The concept of coherence is widely used in different areas of physics like in optics, in quantum optics or in neutron and X-ray scattering, however with subtle differences in meaning for the different communities. In quantum optics it is mainly the source of photons and its characterization in terms of coherence functions which is of concern. In a scattering experiment, on the other hand, the source is supposed to be characterized and it is the internal degrees of freedom of the sample which are studied via their influence on the detected interference pattern. It is one of the purposes of this paper to clarify the different concepts and to show how they are interrelated. The paper is organized as follows. First, we will discuss what interferes in a physical event. This will be treated according to the Feynman formulation of quantum mechanics in terms of probability amplitudes and we will describe nine rules on how to calculate with these amplitudes. Then we will discuss what destroys interference. The main part of the paper treats a number of applications from quantum optics and X-ray and neutron scattering. These include quantum beats, Hanbury Brown and Twiss interferometry, entangled states, Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen paradox and speckle from coherently illuminated samples. PACS 42.25.Hz; 42.25.Kb     

Bootstrapping approach for generating maximally path-entangled photon states

We propose a bootstrapping approach to the generation of maximally path-entangled states of photons, so-called "NOON states." The strong atom-light interaction of cavity QED can be employed to generate NOON states with about 100 photons. These can then be used to boost the existing experimental Kerr nonlinearities based on quantum coherence effects, to facilitate NOON generation with an arbitrarily large number of photons. We also offer an alternative scheme that uses an atom-cavity dispersive interaction to obtain a sufficiently high Kerr nonlinearity necessary for arbitrary NOON generation.     

初态对光波导阵列中连续量子行走影响的研究

本文使用近邻耦合模型得到的解析解,分析了周期性波导中输入态对量子行走的粒子数的概率分布函数 和二阶相干性的影响.结果表明:输入态的对称性质对量子行走过程的二阶相干度有影响, 而对粒子数的概率分布函数影响不大. 关键词： 周期性光波导阵列 量子行走 二阶相干度 纠缠态     

Multimode Hong-Ou-mandel interference

We consider multimode two-photon interference at a beam splitter by photons created by spontaneous parametric down-conversion. The resulting interference pattern is shown to depend upon the transverse spatial symmetry of the pump beam. In an experiment, we employ the first-order Hermite-Gaussian modes in order to show that, by manipulating the pump beam, one can control the resulting two-photon interference behavior. We expect these results to play an important role in the engineering of quantum states of light for use in quantum information processing and quantum imaging.     

Synchronized independent narrow-band single photons and efficient generation of photonic entanglement

We create independent, synchronized single-photon sources with built-in quantum memory based on two remote cold atomic ensembles. The synchronized single photons are used to demonstrate efficient generation of entanglement. The resulting entangled photon pairs violate a Bell's inequality by 5 standard deviations. Our synchronized single photons with their long coherence time of 25 ns and the efficient creation of entanglement serve as an ideal building block for scalable linear optical quantum information processing.     

电磁辐射的相干性

本文的主要目的在综合评述近年来在光的相干性方面研究的成就。表明光子简并度和相干度等在有关问题中起重要作用,诸如干涉、拍频、强度起伏等。由于辐射过程的随机性质,拍频信号的强度由过程的相关度决定;由于光子是玻色子,这就决定了强度起伏中有相关项。从已有实验结果看来,光的相于性完全可从量子力学的基础概念得到解释。 关键词：     

Quantum interference between two single photons of different microwave frequencies

We have measured quantum interference between two single microwave photons trapped in the same superconducting resonator, whose frequencies are initially about 6 GHz apart. We accomplish this by use of a parametric frequency conversion process that mixes the mode currents of two cavity harmonics through a superconducting quantum interference device, and demonstrate that a two-photon entanglement operation can be performed with high fidelity.