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arXiv:1406.1057 · Physical Review A

Multiphoton blockades in pulsed regimes beyond stationary limits

G. H. Hovsepyan, A. R. Shahinyan, Gagik Yu. Kryuchkyan

Published Jul 30, 2014• 66 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We demonstrate multiphoton blockades (PB) in the pulsed regime by using a Kerr-nonlinear dissipative resonator driven by a sequence of Gaussian pulses. It is shown that the results obtained for single-photon, two-photon, and three-photon blockades in the pulsed excitation regime differ considerably from analogous results obtained for the case of continuous-wave (cw) driving. We strongly demonstrate that for the case of cw pumping of the Kerr-nonlinear resonator there are fundamental limits on populations of lower photonic number states (with $n=0$, 1, 2, 3). Thus, such detailed comparison demonstrates that PB due to excitation with a suitable photon pulses is realized beyond the fundamental limits established for cw excitations. We analyze photon-number effects and investigate the phase-space properties of PB on the base of photon number populations, the second-order correlation functions, and the Wigner functions in phase space. The generation of Fock states due to PB in the pulsed regime is analyzed in details.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.90.013839

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We demonstrate multiphoton blockades (PB) in the pulsed regime by using a Kerr-nonlinear dissipative resonator driven by a sequence of Gaussian pulses. It is shown that the results obtained for single-photon, two-photon, and three-photon blockades in the pulsed excitation regime differ considerably from analogous results obtained for the case of continuous-wave (cw) driving. We strongly demonstrate that for the case of cw pumping of the Kerr-nonlinear resonator there are fundamental limits on populations of lower photonic number states (with n=0n=0n=0, 1, 2, 3). Thus, such detailed comparison demonstrates that PB due to excitation with a suitable photon pulses is realized beyond the fundamental limits established for cw excitations. We analyze photon-number effects and investigate the phase-space properties of PB on the base of photon number populations, the second-order correlation functions, and the Wigner functions in phase space. The generation of Fock states due to PB in the pulsed regime is analyzed in details.
Photon blockade, in analogy to Coulomb's or phonon blockades, is a phenomenon when a single photon in a nonlinear cavity blocks the transmission of a second photon. This effect can occur in Kerr-type systems driven by a laser due to strong nonlinear photon-photon interactions. We predict the occurrence of higher-order photon blockades where the transmission of more than two photons is effectively blocked by single- and two-photon states. This photon blockade can be achieved by tuning the frequency of the laser driving field to be equal to the sum of the Kerr nonlinearity and the cavity resonance frequency. We refer to this phenomenon as two-photon blockade or two-photon state truncation via nonlinear scissors, and can also be interpreted as photon-induced tunneling. We also show that, for a driving-field frequency fulfilling another resonance condition and for higher strengths of the driving field, even a three-photon blockade can occur but less clearly than in the case of single- and two-photon blockades. We demonstrate how various photon blockades can be identified by analyzing photon-number correlations, coherence and entropic properties, Wigner functions, and spectra of squeezing. We show that two- and three-photon blockades can, in principle, be observed in various cavity and circuit quantum electrodynamical systems for which the standard single-photon blockade was observed without the need of using higher-order driving interactions or Kerr media exhibiting higher-order nonlinear susceptibility.
Multiphoton blockade provides an efficient way to achieve entangled photon sources and leads to wide applications in modern quantum technologies. Here, we propose a scheme to realize multiphoton blockade by a multi-tone drive. Specifically, we demonstrate two-photon and three-photon blockades in a single-mode optical Kerr resonator using a two-tone and a three-tone drive, respectively. In comparison with the single-tone drive, except for the blockade of the (n+1)(n+1)(n+1)th photon excitation due to large detuning, the key mechanism in this scheme is the sequently resonant excitations of all the mmm-photon states (m≤nm\leq nm≤n) by the nnn-tone drive, which lead to the enhancement of photon generation and the demonstration of multiphoton blockade in the weak driving regime. Moreover, the photon distribution within the system can be adjusted on demand by tuning the relative amplitudes of the driving fields for different frequencies. The scheme can be extended to other bosonic systems and be applied to demonstrate other multiphoton physical effects.
Multiphoton blockade provides an efficient way to achieve entangled photon sources and leads to wide applications in modern quantum technologies. Here, we propose a scheme to realize multiphoton blockade by a multitone drive. Specifically, we demonstrate two-photon and three-photon blockades in a single- mode optical Kerr resonator using a two-tone and a three-tone drive, respectively. In comparison with the single-tone drive, except for the blockade of the (n+1)th(n+1)\mathrm{th}(n+1)th photon excitation due to large detuning, the key mechanism in this scheme is the sequentially resonant excitations of all the mmm-photon states $(m\ensuremath{\le}n)$ by the nnn-tone drive, which lead to the enhancement of photon generation and the demonstration of multiphoton blockade in the weak driving regime. Moreover, the photon distribution within the system can be adjusted on demand by tuning the relative amplitudes of the driving fields for different frequencies. The scheme can be extended to other bosonic systems and be applied to demonstrate other multiphoton physical effects.
Analogous to Coulomb blockade for electrons, photon blockade is a key quantum optical effect in which the presence of one photon prevents the transmission of subsequent ones through a nonlinear medium. Beyond its fundamental interest, photon and multi-photon blockade are actively studied as mechanisms for generating technologically-relevant quantum states of light. Although photon blockade typically requires achieving strong light-matter coupling, increasing the number of atoms fails to enhance antibunching. Here, we analyze the optical transmission properties of a quantum resonator that embeds a two-photon-coupled ensemble of emitters, combining an approximate analytical approach with full quantum numerical simulations. We show that when light and matter are coupled via a two-photon interaction, both single- and multi-photon blockade can benefit from a collective enhancement. We propose different driving schemes in which the second or third-order correlation functions are strongly suppressed with increasing atom number. Differently from established methods, this collective enhancement of non-classical properties occurs with unitary transmission and is ultimately constrained only by decoherence. This demonstrates that collective two-photon couplings are a powerful mechanism for realizing photon blockade even in platforms where individual strong coupling is not achievable.
Abstract Quantum information processing, a key component of quantum information science, has attracted considerable attention. Its realization requires physical platforms and resources, among which optical systems and single-photon sources based on photon blockade (PB) have been widely employed. Here we investigate PB behaviors in a coupled optical cavity system driven by both single- and two-photon fields. The optimal conditions for PB are obtained with respect to the two-photon driving strength and cavity-laser detuning via analytical calculations. Using these optimal solutions, we show that a significant PB effect is achievable even with weak Kerr nonlinearity, and confirm that this behavior corresponds to unconventional PB (UPB) through a comparison of the second- and third-order correlation functions. Furthermore, our analysis reveals that UPB can be enhanced by two-photon dissipation. These results provide theoretical strategies for enhancing UPB, and offer insight into its fundamental mechanism.
The photon blockade (PB) effect represents a quintessential manifestation of quantum optical nonlinearity, where the presence of a single photon within an optical cavity prevents the entry of a second one, thereby realizing a single-photon source. This effect underpins numerous applications in quantum information processing, secure communication, and quantum computation. Nevertheless, the intrinsic nonlinearity of practical optical systems is often too weak to produce a strong blockade, making the enhancement and controllability of the PB effect a persistent challenge. To overcome this limitation, we investigate a two-cavity quantum system incorporating two-photon dissipation as an alternative mechanism for realizing photon blockade. In contrast to conventional schemes that primarily consider single-photon loss, the proposed configuration introduces a second-order nonlinear dissipation channel, through which the correlated loss of photon pairs fundamentally modifies the photon statistics and strengthens the blockade effect. Based on quantum master equation theory, we constructed a model of a two-cavity system incorporating two-photon dissipation and analyzed the effect of different parameters on the photon blockade effect through numerical simulations.