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arXiv:2004.11257

Two-photon interference imaging

Deyang Duan, Yunjie Xia

Published Apr 22, 2020• 0 citations
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Abstract

In this article, we propose the two-photon interference imaging based on two-photon interference mechanism with thermal light source. Theoretical and experimental results show that the imaging quality and imaging speed of two-photon interference imaging are comparable to that of classical optical imaging, and much better than that of conventional quantum imaging (ghost imaging). Furthermore, Two-photon interference imaging can effectively overcome the effect of atmospheric turbulence and other harsh optical environments. The physical essence is the inhibition of two-photon interference mechanism on atmospheric turbulence.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.2004.11257

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In this article, we propose the two-photon interference imaging based on two-photon interference mechanism with thermal light source. Theoretical and experimental results show that the imaging quality and imaging speed of two-photon interference imaging are comparable to that of classical optical imaging, and much better than that of conventional quantum imaging (ghost imaging). Furthermore, Two-photon interference imaging can effectively overcome the effect of atmospheric turbulence and other harsh optical environments. The physical essence is the inhibition of two-photon interference mechanism on atmospheric turbulence.
Turbulence is a serious problem for long distance imaging such as from satellites or ground based telescopes. In this paper we discuss our turbulence-free ghost imaging1 approach that is virtually free from the degrading effects of turbulence. We discuss motivation for the experiments, theory, experimental setup, procedures, and results. The results suggest that thermal two-photon interference may not only be used to improve imaging through turbulence but may also lead to a resource for quantum information processing.
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One of the most surprising consequences of quantum mechanics is the nonlocal multi-particle interference observable in joint-detection of distant particle-detectors. Ghost imaging is one of such phenomena. Two types of ghost imaging have been experimentally demonstrated since 1995. Type-one ghost imaging uses entangled photon pairs as the light source. The nonlocal point-to-point image-forming correlation is the result of a constructive-destructive superposition among a large number of biphoton amplitudes, a nonclassical entity corresponding to different yet indistinguishable alternative ways of producing a joint-detction event between distant photodetectors. Type-two ghost imaging uses chaotic-thermal light. The type-two image-forming correlation is the result of interferences between paired two-photon amplitudes, corresponding to two different yet indistinguishable alternative ways of triggering a join-detection event by two independent photons. A great deal of confusion about ghost imaging comes from "ghost shadow". Similar to x-ray photography, a ghost shadow can be made in coincidences by "blocking-partial blocking-unblocking" of either co-rotating laser beams or classically correlated "speckles". "Ghost shadow" is indeed a classical phenomenon. The physics of ghost imaging, however, is fundamentally different. This article is aimed at exploring the nonlocal two-photon interference nature of ghost imaging.
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As an important part of underwater optical technology, underwater imaging plays a crucial role in accurately capturing underwater targets and environmental features. Facing the challenges of complex ocean environments and severe photon attenuation, quantum imaging breaks through the limitations of traditional optical imaging technology by utilizing the characteristics of two-photon entanglement and time-space correlation, thus offering a new perspective on ocean turbulence. To this end, we propose a new underwater entangled-photon quantum imaging system. Specifically, we first construct an entangled photon quantum imaging physical model through ocean long-exposure turbulence and then exploit an entangled light coincidence imaging reconstruction method to image the target object. Furthermore, in response to the problem that ocean environment has a great impact on photons, we develop a photon capture probability method based on entangled photon pairs to reduce the impact of the ocean turbulence noise on imaging and improve the underwater target imaging resolution. We experimentally demonstrate the effectiveness of our method by showing that even in harsh ocean environments, quantum imaging performs superior resolution capabilities over traditional light source imaging techniques.
Distinct from previous principle-demonstrations, this practical quantum ghost imaging experiment presents the first set of two-photon images captured by a photon counting CCD camera by means of jointly counting 'reflected' photons from the object. In fact, the CCD camera was not 'looking' at the object at all. Rather, the CCD camera was facing the chaotic light source. The output of the CCD camera was used for coincidence registration of the two-photon joint-detection events with another photon counting detector which simply collects all randomly reflected photons from the surface of the object. It is also interesting to find that the observed two-photon images are 'distortion-free', i.e., any disturbances made along the light path has no effect on the quality of the image. These experimental observations are not only useful for practical field-applications, but also important from fundamental point of view. The experiment evidences a rejection of the 'projection shadow' idea in a non-deniable way and further explores the two-photon interference nature of thermal light ghost imaging.