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arXiv:2002.05783 · Physical Review A

Third-order parametric down-conversion: A stimulated approach

Francisco A. Domínguez-Serna, Alfred B. U’Ren, Karina Garay-Palmett

Published Mar 12, 2020• 14 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We study the process of seeded or stimulated third-order parametric down-conversion as an extension of our previous work on spontaneous parametric down-conversion (TOSPDC). We present general expressions for the spectra and throughputs expected for the cases where the seed field or fields overlap either only one or two of the TOSPDC modes and allow for both pump and seed to be either monochromatic or pulsed. We present a numerical study for a particular source design, showing that doubly overlapped seeding can lead to a considerably greater generated flux as compared with singly overlapped seeding. We, furthermore, show that doubly overlapped seeding permits stimulated emission tomography for the reconstruction of the three-photon TOSPDC joint spectral intensity. We hope that our paper will guide future experimental efforts based on the process of third-order parametric down-conversion.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.101.033813

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Parametric down-conversion is a widely used source of nonclassical light in quantum optics and photonic quantum technologies. While stimulated parametric down-conversion with strong classical seeds is well studied, the elementary physical mechanism of stimulation by individual photons has remained largely unexplored experimentally. Here, we study continuous-wave, low-gain down-conversion seeded by an ultra-weak coherent field with an average photon number well below one per coherence time. By measuring third-order temporal correlations, we access the regime in which the single-photon component of the seed can stimulate the emission of a photon pair, giving rise to a temporally correlated three-photon event. We observe a clear enhancement that cannot be explained by spontaneous processes or accidental coincidences alone, providing time-domain evidence of the fundamental stimulation mechanism at the single-photon level. Beyond its fundamental significance, these results suggest new ways to characterize seed–PDC mode overlap, phase matching, and weak nonlinear coupling in regimes where bright stimulated-emission measurements are not appropriate. Multimode and interferometric extensions could enable correlation-based imaging and phase-sensitive spectroscopy.
Parametric down-conversion is a widely used source of nonclassical light in quantum optics and photonic quantum technologies. While stimulated parametric down-conversion with strong classical seeds is well studied, the regime in which stimulation occurs at the single-photon level has hitherto remained largely unexplored experimentally. Here, we study continuous-wave, low-gain down-conversion seeded by a weak coherent field with an average photon number well below one per coherence time. By measuring third-order temporal correlations, we observe a clear enhancement that cannot be accounted for by spontaneous processes or accidental coincidences alone, and is consistent with stimulation involving the seed and the generated photon pair. These results provide time-domain evidence of seed-induced three-photon correlations and suggest new ways to engineer and probe multi-photon states for quantum imaging, sensing, and information processing.
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We study the processes of spontaneous four wave mixing and of third-order spontaneous parametric downconversion in optical fibers, as the basis for the implementation of photon-pair and photon-triplet sources. We present a comparative analysis of the two processes including expressions for the respective quantum states and plots of the joint spectral intensity, a discussion of phasematching characteristics, and expressions for the conversion efficiency. We have also included a comparative study based on numerical results for the conversion efficiency for the two sources, as a function of several key experimental parameters.
Stimulated parametric down-conversion (StimPDC) is the seeded version of the process that underlies much of photonic quantum information. Replacing the vacuum at one input port with a coherent seed leaves the interaction Hamiltonian, the phase-matching function and the two-photon amplitude unchanged, while raising the output to levels accessible with ordinary classical detectors. This review treats the transverse spatial physics of that process. We show that a single relation, in which the idler amplitude is the pointwise product of the pump field with the complex conjugate of the seed, organizes results usually presented separately: the image and coherence transfer experiments of the 1990s; phase conjugation and its use for wavefront correction; the conservation and conjugation of orbital angular momentum, together with the generation of radial modes and geometric intensity patterns; and the processing of vector vortex beams carrying spatially varying polarization. We then consider StimPDC as an instrument rather than as an object of study, covering stimulated emission tomography, the experimental realization of Klyshko's advanced-wave picture, and the transfer of partial coherence, including the conservation of the twist phase of twisted Gaussian Schell-model beams. We close with the quantum regime, reached when the seed approaches the single-photon level or the idler is used as a herald, and with an assessment of open problems and prospective applications.