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arXiv:1512.09288 · Physical Review Applied

Integrated Optical Memory Based on Laser-Written Waveguides

Giacomo Corrielli, Alessandro Seri, Margherita Mazzera, Roberto Osellame, Hugues de Riedmatten

Published May 18, 2016• 82 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Quantum memory is an essential building block for applications in quantum information science, where scalability and integrability are needed for progress toward large-scale architectures. The authors present a platform for integrated photonic memory, based on laser-written waveguides in rare-earth-doped crystals. The coherence properties of the optically active ions persist after micromachining, enabling proof-of-principle light storage using the full atomic-frequency-comb protocol. This is a pioneering demonstration of on-demand optical memory on a chip.

DOI
10.1103/physrevapplied.5.054013

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Quantum memory is an essential building block for applications in quantum information science, where scalability and integrability are needed for progress toward large-scale architectures. The authors present a platform for integrated photonic memory, based on laser-written waveguides in rare-earth-doped crystals. The coherence properties of the optically active ions persist after micromachining, enabling proof-of-principle light storage using the full atomic-frequency-comb protocol. This is a pioneering demonstration of on-demand optical memory on a chip.
Quantum memory is the core device for the construction of large-scale quantum networks. For scalable and convenient practical applications, integrated optical memories, especially on-chip optical memories, are crucial requirements because they can be easily integrated with other on-chip devices. Here, we report the coherent optical memory based on a type-IV waveguide fabricated on the surface of a rare-earth ion-doped crystal (i.e., Eu3+\mathrm{E}{\mathrm{u}}^{3+}Eu3+:Y2SiO5{\mathrm{Y}}_{2}\mathrm{Si}{\mathrm{O}}_{5}Y2​SiO5​). The properties of the optical transition (${}^{7}{\mathrm{F}}_{0}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{}^{5}{\mathrm{D}}_{0}$) of the Eu3+{\mathrm{Eu}}^{3+}Eu3+ ions inside the surface waveguide are well preserved compared to those of the bulk crystal. Spin-wave atomic frequency comb storage is demonstrated inside the type-IV waveguide. The reliability of this device is confirmed by the high interference visibility of $97\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}1\mathrm{%}$ between the retrieval pulse and the reference pulse. The developed on-chip optical memory paves the way towards integrated quantum nodes.
The reversible mapping of quantum states of light in cryogenically cooled rare earth doped crystals, represents one of the most promising routes towards the realization of efficient and high fidelity quantum memories. The miniaturization of these devices in robust and monolithic integrated-optics platforms would be beneficial both in terms of experimental scalability and of enhanced light-matter interaction, arising from the waveguide field confinement. Here, for the first time, we fabricate single mode channel waveguides for visible light at 606 nm in a Praseodymium-doped Yttrium Orthosilicate crystal, which is one of the most employed materials for light storage experiments, thanks to its excellent coherence properties. For the waveguide fabrication, we use the direct technique called femtosecond laser micromachining, in which a femtosecond laser beam is focused inside the crystal volume, and produces a permanent and very localized material modification. In particular, we fabricate the waveguide cladding by inscribing a pair of parallel damage tracks which confine light in the in-between region. With this approach, the waveguide core is not directly exposed to the laser irradiation and consequently its bulk properties result only marginally affected. Measurements of the optical coherence time in waveguide gave results comparable to those obtained in a bulk sample and this confirms that the fabrication procedure does not affect the coherence of the active ions. We performed the storage and the on-demand recall of bright coherent pulses in waveguide, using the atomic frequency comb (AFC) protocol extended to the ground state.
Quantum memories are a key building block for optical quantum computers and quantum networks. Rare-earth ion-doped crystals are a promising material to achieve quantum memory using an atomic frequency comb protocol. However, current atomic frequency comb memories typically use bulk materials or waveguides with large cross sections or rely on fabrication techniques not easily adaptable to wafer scale processing. Here, we demonstrate a compact chip-integrated atomic frequency comb in rare-earth-doped thin-film lithium niobate. Our optical memory exhibits a broad storage bandwidth exceeding 100 MHz and optical storage time as long as 250 ns. The enhanced optical confinement in this device leads to three orders of magnitude reduction in optical power required for a coherent control as compared to ion-diffused waveguides. These compact atomic frequency comb memories pave the way toward scalable, highly efficient, electro-optically tunable quantum photonic systems that can store and manipulate light on a compact chip.
Atomic frequency combs memories that coherently store optical signals are a key building block for optical quantum computers and quantum networks. Integrating such memories into compact and chip-scale devices is essential for scalable quantum technology, but to date most demonstrations have been in bulk materials or waveguides with large cross-sections, or using fabrication techniques not easily adaptable to wafer scale processing. We demonstrate compact chip-integrated atomic frequency comb storage in rare earth doped thin-film lithium niobate. Our optical memory exhibits a broad storage bandwidth exceeding 100 MHz, and optical storage time of over 250 ns. The enhanced optical confinement in this device structure enables three orders of magnitude reduction in optical power as compared to large ion-diffused waveguides for the same Rabi frequency. These compact atomic frequency comb memories pave the way towards scalable, highly efficient, electro-optically tunable quantum photonic systems that can store and manipulate light on a compact chip.
Efficient and long-lived multimode quantum memories are crucial devices in the development of quantum technolgies. The reversible mapping of quantum states of light in rare earth doped crystals represents one of the most promising routes towards the realization of this goal. Such systems are also compatible with the miniaturization of quantum memories in integrated optics platforms, which offer unique features in terms of experimental scalability and enhanced light-matter interaction. Here, we fabricate single mode channel waveguides for 606 nm light in a praseodymium-doped yttrium orthosilicate crystal (Pr3+:Y2SiO5), that, thanks to its excellent coherence properties, is a widely studied material for light storage experiments. Waveguides are inscribed by femtosecond laser writing, adopting the so-called Type I configuration, where the core is directly obtained at the irradiated area. Remarkably, fabricating this kind of waveguides in crystals is a difficult task, as it requires to operate in a very narrow processing parameters window, if existing. We then use these waveguides for performing the storage and retrieval of single photons, implementing the atomic frequency comb protocol. We achieve a storage time of 5,5 µs, which is almost 2 orders of magnitude longer than previous realizations of quantum light storage in a waveguide. In addition, we investigate the potential information multiplexing capabilities of our system by performing the quantum storage of single photons delocalized over 14 different spectral modes. Our results show that laser written waveguides in rare earth-doped solid state systems are very promising for the development of efficient and long-lived multimode quantum memories.