Quantum information processing holds great promise for communicating and computing data efficiently. However, scaling current photonic implementation approaches to larger system size remains an outstanding challenge for realizing disruptive quantum technology. Two main ingredients of quantum information processors are quantum interference and single-photon detectors. Here we develop a hybrid superconducting-photonic circuit system to show how these elements can be combined in a scalable fashion on a silicon chip. We demonstrate the suitability of this approach for integrated quantum optics by interfering and detecting photon pairs directly on the chip with waveguide-coupled single-photon detectors. Using a directional coupler implemented with silicon nitride nanophotonic waveguides, we observe 97% interference visibility when measuring photon statistics with two monolithically integrated superconducting single-photon detectors. The photonic circuit and detector fabrication processes are compatible with standard semiconductor thin-film technology, making it possible to implement more complex and larger scale quantum photonic circuits on silicon chips.
Quantum information processing holds great promise for communicating and computing data efficiently. However, scaling current photonic implementation approaches to larger system size remains an outstanding challenge for realizing disruptive quantum technology. Two main ingredients of quantum information processors are quantum interference and single-photon detectors. Here we develop a hybrid superconducting-photonic circuit system to show how these elements can be combined in a scalable fashion on a silicon chip. We demonstrate the suitability of this approach for integrated quantum optics by interfering and detecting photon pairs directly on the chip with waveguide-coupled single-photon detectors. Using a directional coupler implemented with silicon nitride nanophotonic waveguides, we observe 97% interference visibility when measuring photon statistics with two monolithically integrated superconducting single-photon detectors. The photonic circuit and detector fabrication processes are compatible with standard semiconductor thin-film technology, making it possible to implement more complex and larger scale quantum photonic circuits on silicon chips.
Advanced quantum information science and technology (QIST) applications place exacting demands on optical components. Quantum waveguide circuits offer a route to scalable QIST on a chip. Superconducting single-photon detectors (SSPDs) provide infrared single-photon sensitivity combined with low dark counts and picosecond timing resolution. In this study, we bring these two technologies together. Using SSPDs we observe a two-photon interference visibility of 92.3±1.0% in a silica-on-silicon waveguide directional coupler at λ=804 nm—higher than that measured with silicon detectors (89.9±0.3%). We further operated controlled-NOT gate and quantum metrology circuits with SSPDs. These demonstrations present a clear path to telecom-wavelength quantum waveguide circuits.
Building complex quantum systems has the potential to reveal phenomena that cannot be studied using classical simulation. Photonics has proven to be an effective test-bed for the investigation of such quantum-enhanced technologies, however, the proliferation of bulk optical components is unlikely to be a scalable route towards building more complex devices. Instead, the miniaturisation, inherent phase stability and trivial alignment afforded by integrated photonic systems has been shown to be a promising alternative. In the first half of this thesis, we describe experiments exploiting the quantum interference of three single photons on a reconfigurable integrated photonic chip. We develop a low-loss source of single photons and introduce a low-loss silica-on-silicon waveguide architecture which enables us to show the first genuine quantum interference of three single photons on an integrated platform. A loss-tolerant, element-wise characterisation scheme is developed along with a statistical test to verify that this multi-photon circuit behaves as expected. We then make use of this three-photon interference to detail the first proof-of-principle demonstration of a new intermediate model of quantum computation called boson sampling. Finally, we perform an on-chip demonstration of the quantum teleportation protocol where all key parts --- entanglement preparation, Bell-state analysis and quantum state tomography --- are performed on a reconfigurable photonic chip. The element-wise characterisation scheme developed earlier is shown to be critical to mitigate fabricated component errors. We develop a theoretical model to account for all sources of possible error in the circuit and find good agreement with the measured teleported state fidelities, which exceed the average teleportation fidelity possible with a classical device. We identify the elements of this error budget relevant to scaling and propose improvements to chip characterisation and fabrication in order to achieve high fidelity operation. In the second half, we discuss the use of high efficiency superconducting transition edge sensors in enabling quantum experiments using more photons. We detail the installation and characterisation of these detectors in a new lab in Oxford. We achieve good photon number-resolution and high-efficiency operation. Work to integrate these detectors on the silica-on-silicon waveguide architecture is discussed and we detail the optical and thermal device modelling performed to optimise the on-chip detection efficiency. New, on-chip detectors, fabricated according to this design are shown to operate as expected and achieve high-efficiency and good energy resolution.
Photonic quantum technologies hold promise to repeat the success of integrated nanophotonic circuits in non-classical applications. Using linear optical elements, quantum optical computations can be performed with integrated optical circuits and can therefore overcome the existing limitations in terms of scalability. In addition to passive optical devices for realizing photonic quantum gates, active elements, such as single-photon sources and single-photon detectors, are essential ingredients for future optical quantum circuits. Material systems that allow for the monolithic integration of all components are particularly attractive, including III-V semiconductors, silicon and diamond. Here, we demonstrate nanophotonic integrated circuits made from high-quality polycrystalline diamond thin films in combination with on-chip single-photon detectors. By using superconducting nanowires that are coupled evanescently to traveling waves, we achieve high detection efficiencies of up to 66% as well as low dark count rates and a timing resolution of 190 ps. Our devices are fully scalable and hold promise for functional diamond photonic quantum devices. The development of on-chip quantum circuitry progresses with the integration of single-photon detectors with diamond nanophotonic waveguides. Researchers based in Germany at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and the Fraunhofer Institute of Applied Solid State Physics have fabricated superconducting niobium nitride nanowire detectors directly on top of diamond rib waveguides. This traveling wave design means that photons propagating in the diamond waveguides are coupled evanescently to the superconducting nanowires, allowing efficent on-chip detection of single photons. The small footprints of the detectors allow hundreds of detector circuits to be realized on a single chip. Furthermore, their fast response (they have a decay time of just 5.1 nanoseconds) allows operation at count rates of up to 200 megahertz and with a timing resolution of 190 picoseconds.
Quantum information science aims to harness uniquely quantum mechanical properties to enhance measurement and information technologies, and to explore fundamental aspects of quantum physics. Of the various approaches to quantum computing [1], photons are particularly appealing for their low-noise properties and ease of manipulation at the single qubit level [2,3]. Encoding quantum information in photons is also an appealing approach to quantum communication, metrology (eg. [4]), measurement (eg. [5]) and other quantum technologies [6]. However, the implementation of optical quantum circuits with bulk optics has reached practical limits. We have developed an integrated waveguide approach to photonic quantum circuits for high performance, miniaturization and scalability [7]. Here we report high-fidelity silica-on-silicon integrated optical realizations of key quantum photonic circuits, including two-photon quantum interference and a controlled-NOT logic gate [8]. We have demonstrated controlled manipulation of up to four photons on-chip, including highfidelity single qubit operations, using a lithographically patterned resistive phase shifter [9]. We have used this architecture to implement a small-scale compiled version of Shor's quantum factoring algorithm [10], demonstrated heralded generation of tunable four photon entangled states from a six photon input [11], a reconfigurable two-qubit circuit [12], and combined waveguide photonic circuits with superconducting single photon detectors [13]. We describe complex quantum interference behavior in multi-mode interference devices with up to eight inputs and outputs [14], and quantum walks of correlated particles in arrays of coupled waveguides [15]. Finally, we give an overview of our recent work on fundamental aspects of quantum measurement [16,17] and diamond [18,19] and nonlinear [20,21] photon sources.
Quantum information science aims to harness uniquely quantum mechanical properties to enhance measurement and information technologies, and to explore fundamental aspects of quantum physics. Of the various approaches to quantum computing [1], photons are particularly appealing for their low-noise properties and ease of manipulation at the single qubit level [2]. Encoding quantum information in photons is also an appealing approach to quantum communication, metrology (eg. [3]), measurement (eg. [4]) and other quantum technologies [5]. However, the implementation of optical quantum circuits with bulk optics has reached practical limits. We have developed an integrated waveguide approach to photonic quantum circuits for high performance, miniaturisation and scalability [6]. Here we report high-fidelity silica-on-silicon integrated optical realisations of key quantum photonic circuits, including two-photon quantum interference and a controlled-NOT logic gate [7]. We have demonstrated controlled manipulation of up to four photons on-chip, including high-fidelity single qubit operations, using a lithographically patterned resistive phase shifter [8]. We have used this architecture to implement a small-scale compiled version of Shorʼs quantum factoring algorithm [9] and demonstrated heralded generation of tuneable four photon entangled states from a six photon input [10]. We have combined waveguide photonic circuits with superconducting single photon detectors [11]. We describe complex quantum interference behaviour in multi-mode interference devices with up to eight inputs and outputs [12], and quantum walks of correlated particles in arrays of coupled waveguides [13]. Finally, we give an overview of our recent work on fundamental aspects of quantum measurement [14,15] and single photon sources [16,17].
Ultrafast, high-efficiency single-photon detectors are among the most sought-after elements in modern quantum optics and quantum communication. However, imperfect modal matching and finite photon absorption rates have usually limited their maximum attainable detection efficiency. Here we demonstrate superconducting nanowire detectors atop nanophotonic waveguides, which enable a drastic increase of the absorption length for incoming photons. This allows us to achieve high on-chip single-photon detection efficiency up to 91% at telecom wavelengths, repeatable across several fabricated chips. We also observe remarkably low dark count rates without significant compromise of the on-chip detection efficiency. The detectors are fully embedded in scalable silicon photonic circuits and provide ultrashort timing jitter of 18 ps. Exploiting this high temporal resolution, we demonstrate ballistic photon transport in silicon ring resonators. Our direct implementation of a high-performance single-photon detector on chip overcomes a major barrier in integrated quantum photonics. High-efficiency and high-speed single-photon detectors are vital for quantum optical technologies. Using superconducting nanowire detectors on nanophotonic waveguides, Pernice et al.demonstrate on-chip single-photon detection efficiencies up to 91% at telecommunications wavelengths.