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arXiv:2106.04138 · Physical Review A

Interaction-free imaging of multipixel objects

Alexandra Maria Pălici, Tudor-Alexandru Isdrailă, Stefan Ataman, Radu Ionicioiu

Published Jan 31, 2022• 11 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Quantum imaging, one of the pillars of quantum technologies, is well suited to study sensitive samples which require low-light conditions, like biological tissues. In this context, interaction-free measurements (IFM) allow us to infer the presence of an opaque object without the photon interacting with the sample. Current IFM schemes are designed for single-pixel objects, while real-life samples are structured, multipixel objects. Here we extend the IFM imaging schemes to multipixel, semitransparent objects, by encoding the information about the pixels into an internal degree of freedom, namely orbital angular momentum. This allows us to image the pixels in parallel. Our solution exhibits a better theoretical efficiency than the single-pixel case. Our scheme can be extended to other degrees of freedom, like the photon radial quantum number, in order to image one-dimensional (1D) and 2D objects.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.105.013529

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Quantum imaging, one of the pillars of quantum technologies, is well suited to study sensitive samples which require low-light conditions, like biological tissues. In this context, interaction-free measurements (IFM) allow us to infer the presence of an opaque object without the photon interacting with the sample. Current IFM schemes are designed for single-pixel objects, while real-life samples are structured, multipixel objects. Here we extend the IFM imaging schemes to multipixel, semitransparent objects, by encoding the information about the pixels into an internal degree of freedom, namely orbital angular momentum. This allows us to image the pixels in parallel. Our solution exhibits a better theoretical efficiency than the single-pixel case. Our scheme can be extended to other degrees of freedom, like the photon radial quantum number, in order to image one-dimensional (1D) and 2D objects.
Correlated light (either classical or quantum) can be employed in various ways to improve resolution and measurement sensitivity. In an “interaction-free” measurement, a single photon can be used to reveal the presence of an object placed within one arm of an interferometer without being absorbed by it. This method has previously been applied to imaging. With a technique known as “ghost imaging”, entangled photon pairs are used for detecting an opaque object with significantly improved signal-to-noise ratio while preventing over-illumination. Here, we integrate these two methods to obtain a new imaging technique which we term “interaction-free ghost-imaging” that possesses the benefits of both techniques. While improving the image quality of conventional ghost-imaging, this new technique is also sensitive to phase and polarization changes in the photons introduced by a structured object. Furthermore, thanks to the “interaction-free” nature of this new technique, it is possible to reduce the number of photons required to produce a clear image of the object (which could be otherwise damaged by the photons) making this technique superior for probing light-sensitive materials and eventually biological tissues. If time allows, I will discuss some follow-up works involving partial measurements and remote erasure/completion of images. The latter techniques can help to suppress various types of noise during the imaging process.
Quantum - or classically correlated - light can be employed in various ways to improve resolution and measurement sensitivity. In an "interaction-free" measurement, a single photon can be used to reveal the presence of an object placed within one arm of an interferometer without being absorbed by it. With a technique known as "ghost-imaging", entangled photon pairs are used for detecting an opaque object with significantly improved signal-to-noise ratio while preventing over-illumination. Here, we integrate these two methods to obtain a new imaging technique which we term "interaction-free ghost-imaging" (IFGI). With this new technique, we reduce photon illumination on the object by up to 26.5% while still maintaining at least the same image quality of conventional ghost-imaging. Alternatively, IFGI can improve image signal-to-noise ratio by 18% when given the same number of interacting photons as in standard ghost-imaging. IFGI is also sensitive to phase and polarisation changes of the photons introduced by a structured object. These advantages make IFGI superior for probing light-sensitive materials and biological tissues.
Abstract A typical imaging scenario requires three basic ingredients: (1) a light source that emits light, which in turn interacts and scatters off the object of interest; (2) detection of the light being scattered from the object and (3) a detector with spatial resolution. These indispensable ingredients in typical imaging scenarios may limit their applicability in the imaging of biological or other sensitive specimens due to unavailable photon-starved detection capabilities and inevitable damage induced by interaction. Here, we propose and experimentally realize a quantum imaging protocol that alleviates all three requirements. By embedding a single-photon Michelson interferometer into a nonlinear interferometer based on induced coherence and harnessing single-pixel imaging technique, we demonstrate interaction-free, single-pixel quantum imaging of a structured object with undetected photons. Thereby, we push the capability of quantum imaging to the extreme point in which no interaction is required between object and photons and the detection requirement is greatly reduced. Our work paves the path for applications in characterizing delicate samples with single-pixel imaging at silicon-detectable wavelengths.
Due to the infinite range of possibly achievable degrees of freedom, orbital angular momentum (OAM) can tremendously increase the capacity of communication system. Here, we propose a scheme to generate OAM entanglement by using interaction-free measurement (IFM). As the superposition state of the quantum absorption object is not changed after IFM, our scheme can be extended to multiparty easily. The numerical analysis results show that the fidelity of generated OAM entanglement can be arbitrarily close to unity. Besides, the implementation issues are also discussed to evaluate the feasibility in experiment. This OAM entanglement with multiple degrees of freedom will play a key role in distributed entanglement computing and efficient quantum communication.
Quantum imaging techniques offer enhanced resolution, contrast, and precision at ultralow illumination levels compared to traditional imaging approaches. Relying on the unique properties of entangled photon pairs, two of these techniques stand out: the correlation-based quantum imaging technique provides visibility enhancement in imaging of a low-reflectivity object which is subject to excessive noise and losses, while the interaction-free ghost imaging allows for probing the presence of an object with an ultimately low number of photons. Here we propose a quantum imaging scheme that combines the unique advantages of these two approaches. We show that this scheme offers high-contrast imaging of objects with a minimal number of photons that can minimize thermal noise efficiently and create background-free images. We anticipate that this approach can find application in the imaging of photosensitive biological tissues in a noninvasive and harm-free fashion.
Interaction-free measurement (IFM) is a surprising consequence of quantum interference, where the presence of objects can be sensed without any disturbance of the object being measured. Here, we show an extension of IFM using techniques from spatial adiabatic passage, specifically multiple recipient adiabatic passage. Due to subtle properties of the adiabatic passage, it is possible to image an object without interaction between the imaging photons and the sample. The technique can be used on multiple objects in parallel and is entirely deterministic in the adiabatic limit. Unlike more conventional IFM schemes, this adiabatic process is driven by the symmetry of the system, and not by more usual interference effects. As such it provides an interesting alternative quantum protocol that may be applicable to photonic implementations of spatial adiabatic passage. We also show that this scheme can be used to implement a collision-free quantum routing protocol.