Storage of squeezed light as a step towards universal quantum memory

Jinxian Guo, Meihong Wang, Zeliang Wu +6 more

In continuous-variable quantum information processing, it is crucial to develop high-efficiency and broadband quantum memory of squeezed light, which enables the storage of full-bandwidth information. Here, we present a quantum memory of squeezed light with up to 24 MHz bandwidth, which is at least 12 times that of previous narrowband resonant memory systems, via a far-off resonant Raman process. We achieve output squeezing of as high as 1.0 dB with fidelity above 92% and a memory efficiency of 80%, corresponding to an end-to-end efficiency of 64.2%, when input squeezing is 1.6 dB. The lowest excess noise of 0.025 shot-noise-unit in the memory system is estimated by the noisy channel model which is benefited from optimizing quantum memory performance with a backward retrieval strategy. Our results represent a breakthrough in high-performance memory for squeezed states within tens of MHz-level bandwidth, which has potential applications in high-speed quantum information processing.

Morgan P. Hedges, Jevon J. Longdell, Yongmin Li +1 more

Adrià Labay-Mora, Roberta Zambrini, Gian Luca Giorgi

Quantum oscillators with nonlinear driving and dissipative terms have gained significant attention due to their ability to stabilize cat states for universal quantum computation. Recently, superconducting circuits have been employed to realize such long-lived qubits stored in coherent states. We present a generalization of these oscillators, which are not limited to coherent states. The key ingredient lies in the presence of different nonlinearities in driving and dissipation, beyond the quadratic one. Through an extensive analysis of the asymptotic dynamical features for different nonlinearities, we identify the conditions for the storage and retrieval of quantum states, such as squeezed states, in both coherent and incoherent superpositions. We explore their applications in quantum computing, where squeezing prolongs the lifetime of memory storage for qubits encoded in the superposition of two symmetric squeezed states, and in quantum associative memory, which has so far been limited to the storage of classical patterns.

Brian Julsgaard, Jacob Friis Sherson, J. I. Cirac +2 more

Harry J. Kimble

Sidney Burks, M. Chamarro, M. Thierry Chaneliere +5 more

A reversible quantum memory allowing us to store and retrieve quantum information serves as a key necessity for implementing many of novel quantum information protocols. As light serves as a reliable long-range carrier of quantum information, and atoms offer the possibility of long storage times, current attempts at creating quantum memories focus on the transfer of the quantum fluctuations of light onto atomic coherences. The work in this thesis focuses on the development of a quantum memory for squeezed light using an ensemble of cold Cesium atoms stored in a magneto-optical trap. Our two major milestones were the development of a source of nonclassical light, and the development of a suitable atomic medium for storage. We first present the results of our efforts to generate a source of squeezed vacuum states resonant with the Cesium D2 line using a PPKTP nonlinear crystal inside of an optical parametric oscillator. Additionally, we characterize these squeezed states by carrying out a quantum state tomography using an iterative maximum likelihood approach. Next we look at the development of a new experiment which would allow us to use cold Cesium atoms as a storage medium in our recently developed magneto-optical trap. As this requires an array of novel tools and experimental techniques, we will discuss the development of these elements, and how they have furthered our progress towards storing quantum states onto our Cesium atoms, and eventually entangling two atomic ensembles.