A fully quantum mechanical formalism is developed to calculate photon pair detection probabilities in leaky coupled-resonator optical waveguide. Using our formalism we have studied the effect of loss on pair evolution as well as higher order pair generations in the system.
We theoretically model pair generation and evolution via the nonlinear process of spontaneous four-wave mixing in a coupled-resonator optical waveguide in a photonic crystal slab. Using the adjoint master equation for a system of lossy coupled cavities, we calculate a symmetrized second-order coherence function to determine pair detection probability. We find that the scattering loss can have as large an effect on pair generation as waveguide dispersion. In particular, the wave-vector dependence of the loss can shift the frequency of the maximum detection probability and therefore cannot, in general, be ignored or treated via a simple overall loss factor.
We investigate theoretically the spontaneous four-wave mixing (FWM) process that occurs in optical waveguides, as a source of quantum correlated photon-pairs. We consider that the waveguide used to implement the spontaneous FWM process presents a high value of nonlinear parameter, γ = 93.4 W-1m-1, and a non-negligible value of loss coefficient, α = 133.3 dB/m. Moreover, the theoretical model also consider the Raman scattering that inevitably accompanies the FWM process, and generates time-uncorrelated (noise) photon pairs. We use the coincident-to-accidental ratio (CAR) as a figure of merit of the photon pair source, and we were able to observe a CAR of the order of 65 in a high loss regime. After, we use the time-correlated photon pairs generated by the spontaneous FWM process to implement a heralded single photon source at waveguide output. In this scenario, the detection of one photon of the pair heralds the presence of the other photon. The quality of the source was studied by the evaluation of the second order coherence function for one photon of the pair conditioned by the detection of its twin photon. We observe that the presence of a high loss coefficient tends to improve the quality of the photon source, when compared with the lossless regime, even considering the Raman noise photons. We obtain a value for the conditional second order coherence function of the order of 0.11 in absence of loss, and a value of 0.03 for a loss coefficient of 133.3 dB/m.
Summary form only given. The rapid development of quantum information technology requires the ability to reliably create and distribute single photons [1]. Photon-pair production through spontaneous four-wave mixing (SpFWM) allows heralded single photons to be generated at communication wavelengths and in fiber, compatible with conventional communication systems, with small losses. Creating single photons in desired quantum states require careful design of waveguide structures. This is greatly facilitated by a general numerical approach as presented here. Additionally, such a numerical approach allows detailed analysis of real systems where all relevent effects are included.
We develop a general Hamiltonian treatment of spontaneous four-wave mixing in a microring resonator side-coupled to a channel waveguide. The effect of scattering losses in the ring is included, as well as parasitic nonlinear effects including self- and cross-phase modulation. A procedure for computing the output of such a system for arbitrary parameters and pump states is presented. For the limit of weak pumping an expression for the joint spectral intensity of generated photon pairs, as well as the singles-to-coincidences ratio, is derived.