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arXiv:2107.08742 · Chinese Physics Letters

Synchronization and Phase Shaping of Single Photons with High-Efficiency Quantum Memory

Keyu Su, Yunfei Wang, Shanchao Zhang, Zhuoping Kong, Yi Zhong, Jianfeng Li, Hui Yan, Shi-Liang Zhu

Published Oct 1, 2021• 9 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Time synchronization and phase shaping of single photons both play fundamental roles in quantum information applications that rely on multi-photon quantum interference. Phase shaping typically requires separate modulators with extra insertion losses. Here, we develop an all-optical built-in phase modulator for single photons using a quantum memory. The fast phase modulation of a single photon in both step and linear manner are verified by observing the efficient quantum-memory-assisted Hong–Ou–Mandel interference between two single photons, where the anti-coalescence effect of bosonic photon pairs is demonstrated. The developed phase modulator may push forward the practical quantum information applications.

DOI
10.1088/0256-307x/38/9/094202

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Time synchronization and phase shaping of single photons both play fundamental roles in quantum information applications that rely on multi-photon quantum interference. Phase shaping typically requires separate modulators with extra insertion losses. Here, we develop an all-optical built-in phase modulator for single photons using a quantum memory. The fast phase modulation of a single photon in both step and linear manner are verified by observing the efficient quantum-memory-assisted Hong–Ou–Mandel interference between two single photons, where the anti-coalescence effect of bosonic photon pairs is demonstrated. The developed phase modulator may push forward the practical quantum information applications.
A fundamental element of quantum information processing with photonic qubits is the nonclassical quantum interference between two photons when they bunch together via the Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) effect. Ultimately, many such photons must be processed in complex interferometric networks. For this purpose, it is essential to synchronize the arrival times of the flying photons and to keep their purities high. On the basis of the recent experimental success of single-photon storage with high purity, we demonstrate for the first time the HOM interference of two heralded, nearly pure optical photons synchronized through two independent quantum memories. Controlled storage times of up to 1.8 μs for about 90 events per second were achieved with purities that were sufficiently high for a negative Wigner function confirmed with homodyne measurements.
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In the last two decades, many quantum optics experiments have demonstrated small-scale quantum information processing applications with several photons. Beyond such proof-of-principle demonstrations, efficient preparation of large, but definite, numbers of photons is of great importance for further scaling up and speeding up photonic quantum information processing. Typical single-photon generation techniques based on nonlinear parametric processes face challenges of probabilistic generation. Here we demonstrate efficient synchronization of photons from multiple nonlinear parametric heralded single-photon sources (HSPSs), using quantum memories (QMs). Our low-loss optical memories greatly enhance (~30x) the generation rate of coincidence photons from two independent HSPSs, while maintaining high indistinguishability (95.7%) of the synchronized photons. As an application, we perform the first demonstration of HSPS-based measurement-device-independent quantum key distribution (MDI-QKD). The synchronized HSPSs demonstrated here will pave the way toward efficient quantum communication and larger scale optical quantum computing.
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Two-photon interference is a cornerstone of quantum optics, enabling imaging, sensing, and precision measurements that surpass classical limits. By harnessing the quantum interference of photon pairs, as demonstrated by the Hong-Ou-Mandel effect, this approach offers superior axial resolution and intrinsic dispersion cancellation, along with strong noise suppression arising from the precise temporal correlations between photons. Building on these principles, we present the theoretical framework and experimental realization of phase-dependent quantum optical coherence tomography (QOCT), a technique that employs phase-modulated two-photon interference for noninvasive morphological analysis of multilayered samples. We demonstrate that introducing controlled phase shifts to photon pairs in a Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometer effectively eliminates artifacts caused by reflections at different sample layers, thereby greatly improving the accuracy and reliability of QOCT measurements. This work advances the fundamental understanding and practical deployment of two-photon interference, overcoming a key limitation in applying QOCT to real-world applications such as biomedical imaging and materials characterization.
Classical Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) effect – two-particle interference on a lossless beamsplitter, reveals the fundamental difference between bosonic and fermionic particles. As a result of such interference, pairs of bosons coalesce while pairs of fermions anti-coalesce. Here we report an observation of the anti-HOM effect where bosons anti-coalesce and fermions show coalescent-like behavior when interfere on a lossy beamsplitter. By exploiting two-photon entangled states, we provide an experimental demonstration of the anti-HOM effect for both bosonic and fermionic spatial wavefunctions of the photons. This fundamental phenomenon may enrich quantum information and metrology protocols where states of entangled photons are dynamically converted.