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arXiv:2001.07881 · Applied Physics B

Fabrication of optical nanofibre-based cavities using focussed ion-beam milling: a review

Priscila Romagnoli, Maki Maeda, Jonathan M. Ward, Viet Giang Truong, Síle Nic Chormaic

Published May 31, 2020• 36 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Abstract Nanofibre-based optical cavities are particularly useful for quantum optics applications, such as the development of integrated single-photon sources, and for studying fundamental light–matter interactions in cavity quantum electrodynamics (cQED). Although several techniques have been used to produce such cavities, focussed ion beam (FIB) milling is becoming popular; it can be used for the fabrication of complex structures directly in the nanofibre. However, it is challenging to mill insulating materials with highly curved geometries and large aspect ratios, such as silica nanofibres, due to charge accumulation in the material. In this article, we highlight the main features of nanofibres and briefly review cQED with nanofibre-based optical cavities. An overview of the milling process is given with a summary of different FIB milled devices and their applications. Finally, we present our technique to produce nanofibre cavities by FIB milling. To overcome the aforementioned challenges, we present a specially designed base plate with an indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated Si substrate and outline our procedure, which improves stability during milling and increases repeatability.

DOI
10.1007/s00340-020-07456-x

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Abstract Nanofibre-based optical cavities are particularly useful for quantum optics applications, such as the development of integrated single-photon sources, and for studying fundamental light–matter interactions in cavity quantum electrodynamics (cQED). Although several techniques have been used to produce such cavities, focussed ion beam (FIB) milling is becoming popular; it can be used for the fabrication of complex structures directly in the nanofibre. However, it is challenging to mill insulating materials with highly curved geometries and large aspect ratios, such as silica nanofibres, due to charge accumulation in the material. In this article, we highlight the main features of nanofibres and briefly review cQED with nanofibre-based optical cavities. An overview of the milling process is given with a summary of different FIB milled devices and their applications. Finally, we present our technique to produce nanofibre cavities by FIB milling. To overcome the aforementioned challenges, we present a specially designed base plate with an indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated Si substrate and outline our procedure, which improves stability during milling and increases repeatability.
Efficient coupling of photons emitted from single light emitters into the single guided mode of an optical fiber is important to realize photonic quantum network devices [1], such as single photon sources [2] and quantum phase gates [3]. For this purpose, we have developed nanofiber Bragg cavities (NFBCs) and observed the enhanced photon emission from the single light emitter [4]. Here, we report the development of the NFBC with the Q-factor of 1560, which is about 5 times larger than our previous NFBC fabricated by a gallium focused ion beam (FIB) milling system [4]. According to numerical simulation, the NFBC with such high-ß factor can be realized Purcell factor of about 18 and the coupling efficiency of about 80 %.
In this work, we use focused ion beam (FIB) milling to generate custom mirror shapes for quantum simulation in optical microcavities. In the paraxial limit, light in multimode optical microcavities follows an equation of motion which is equivalent to Schrödinger’s equation, with the surface topography of the mirrors playing the role of the potential energy landscape. FIB milling allows us to engineer a wide variety of trapping potentials for microcavity light, through exquisite control over the mirror topography, including 2D box, 1D waveguide, and Mexican hat potentials. The 2D box potentials are sufficiently flat over tens of microns, that the optical modes of the cavity, found by solving Schrödinger’s equation on the measured cavity topography, are standing-wave modes of the box, rather than localised to deviations. The predicted scattering loss due to surface roughness measured using atomic force microscopy is found to be 177 parts per million, which corresponds to a cavity finesse of 2.2 × 104 once other losses have been taken into account. Spectra from dye-filled microcavities formed using these features show thermalised light in flat 2D potentials close to dye resonance, and spectrally-resolved cavity modes at the predicted frequencies for elliptical potentials. These results also represent a first step towards realising superfluid light and quantum simulation in arbitrary-shaped optical microcavities using FIB milling.
Funnelling the light emitted from quantum emitters like atoms, molecules, or defect centers into the guided mode of a single mode optical fiber is highly important for scaling up quantum optics experiments, since it provides the possibility to interconnect experiments at different locations and ensures high mode overlap of photons from different sources. Here, we present a photonic nanocavity on a tapered optical fiber. The cavities are formed by two Bragg mirrors fabricated by an ion beam [1]. Characterization in terms of transmission, reflection, and polarization are performed and compared with numerical simulations [2]. The quality factors of the fabricated devices can reach values over 300 while the mode volume is smaller than the cubic wavelength. Simulations indicate that a Purcell enhancement of 19.1 with 82 % coupling efficiency can be reached using this cavities. A comparison of cavities fabricated using a gallium beam is compared with cavities made using a helium beam giving insights about implantation of gallium in the ion beam milling fabrication of resonators. Using the knowledge from experiment and simulation, new designs for nanofiber Bragg grating cavities are developed and tested. [1] A W Schell et al. Sci. Rep. 5, 9619 (2015) [2] H Takashima et al. Opt. Express 24, 15050-15058 (2016)
Abstract Complete control of light-matter interactions at a single quantum level is critical for quantum science applications such as precision measurement and information processing. Nanophotonic devices, developed with recent advancements in nanofabrication techniques, can be used to tailor the interactions between single photons and atoms. One example of such a nanophotonic device is the optical nanofibre, which provides an excellent platform due to the strongly confined transverse light fields, long interaction length, low loss, and diverse optical modes. This facilitates a strong interaction between atoms and guided light, revealing chiral atom-light processes and the prospect of waveguide quantum electrodynamics. This paper highlights recent advances, experimental techniques, and future perspectives of the optical nanofibre-atom hybrid quantum platform.
Fiber-integrated micro-optical elements promise a scalable approach to photon collection and beam shaping for quantum information processing. Here, we demonstrate single-step micro-machining of micro-spherical, micro-spiral, and micro-axicon structures directly onto the core of single-mode optical fibers using focused-ion beam (FIB) machining with nanometer-scale precision. Atomic force microscopy reveals that micro-concave and micro-convex spherical surfaces achieve shape accuracies of λ/50λ/50λ/50 and λ/33λ/33λ/33 (at λ=633λ= 633λ=633~nm), respectively. Via optical characterization using a He-Ne laser (633~nm), we verify for the micro-spiral and -axicon structures the expected far-field donut beam patterns. Via Mach-Zehnder interferometry, we verify the azimuthal and radial phase structure of the light emitted from the spiral and axicon fibers, respectively. Surface metrology further shows that FIB processing introduces only a small increase in nanoscale roughness while preserving sub-nanometer RMS surface quality. The monolithically integrated fiber micro-optic elements demonstrated here enable broad use in quantum technology, for example, fiber micro-cavities for cavity quantum electrodynamics, beam shaping for neutral atom trapping, and the generation of structured light for free-space quantum network links.