The generation of continuous-variable (CV) scalable multipartite entanglement and non-Gaussian states is important for quantum information, in particular quantum computing. Non-Gaussian Wigner functions as well as macroscopic scaling of multipartite entanglement are both necessary ingredients for a CV quantum computer [1]. As a result it is necessary to find a reliable way to produce such states in a compact, manageable manner. Our group has shown that the use of concurrent second order nonlinearities and continuous variables can solve the scalability problem [2]. Second order cascaded nonlinearities could also be used in an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) to produce an effective third-order Hamiltonian, which is needed to produce non-Gaussian states.
The generation of continuous-variable (CV) scalable multipartite entanglement and non-Gaussian states is important for quantum information, in particular quantum computing. Non-Gaussian Wigner functions as well as macroscopic scaling of multipartite entanglement are both necessary ingredients for a CV quantum computer [1]. As a result it is necessary to find a reliable way to produce such states in a compact, manageable manner. Our group has shown that the use of concurrent second order nonlinearities and continuous variables can solve the scalability problem [2]. Second order cascaded nonlinearities could also be used in an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) to produce an effective third-order Hamiltonian, which is needed to produce non-Gaussian states.
We show that scalable multipartite entanglement among light fields may be generated by optical parametric oscillators (OPOs). The tripartite entanglement existent among the three bright beams produced by a single OPO---pump, signal, and idler---is scalable to a system of many OPOs by pumping them in cascade with the same optical field. This latter serves as an entanglement distributor. The special case of two OPOs is studied, as it is shown that the resulting five bright beams share genuine multipartite entanglement. In addition, the structure of entanglement distribution among the fields can be manipulated to some degree by tuning the incident pump power. The scalability to many fields is straightforward, allowing an alternative implementation of a multipartite quantum information network with continuous variables.
In the present PhD work, we focus on a specific class of quantum states of light: the non-Gaussian states. These states have the particularity of exhibiting Wigner functions with some negative values. This quantum feature is a necessary condition to perform some quantum computation task; furthermore it is also useful for various other applications, including quantum communication and metrology. Different strategies can be used to generate these states. Here, we start from Gaussian states produced by optical parametric oscillators in the continuous wave regime, (i.e. single-mode and two-mode squeezed vacuum states). The non-Gaussian feature can only be obtained by non-linear phenomena (over-quadratic Hamiltonian). In our case, the non-linearity is induced by photon-counting-based measurements (also called non-Gaussian measurements). This study is mainly divided into two parts. First, the generation of non-classical states associated with two types of qubit encoding: the single-photon state, used for quantum information with discrete variables, and the coherent state superposition (the so-called optical Schrodinger cat state), used for quantum information with continuous variables. These two states have then been used to perform some quantum information protocols. The first one addresses the problem of single-photon entanglement witness, and the other the generation of entanglement between the two encodings (also called hybrid entanglement).
In the present PhD work, we focus on a specific class of quantum states of light: the non-Gaussian states. These states have the particularity of exhibiting Wigner functions with some negative values. This quantum feature is a necessary condition to perform some quantum computation task; furthermore it is also useful for various other applications, including quantum communication and metrology. Different strategies can be used to generate these states. Here, we start from Gaussian states produced by optical parametric oscillators in the continuous wave regime, (i.e. single-mode and two-mode squeezed vacuum states). The non-Gaussian feature can only be obtained by non-linear phenomena (over-quadratic Hamiltonian). In our case, the non-linearity is induced by photon-counting-based measurements (also called non-Gaussian measurements). This study is mainly divided into two parts. First, the generation of non-classical states associated with two types of qubit encoding: the single-photon state, used for quantum information with discrete variables, and the coherent state superposition (the so-called optical Schrödinger cat state), used for quantum information with continuous variables. These two states have then been used to perform some quantum information protocols. The first one addresses the problem of single-photon entanglement witness, and the other the generation of entanglement between the two encodings (also called hybrid entanglement).
One-way quantum computing uses single-qubit projective measurements performed on a cluster state (a highly entangled state of multiple qubits) in order to enact quantum gates. The model is promising due to its potential scalability; the cluster state may be produced at the beginning of the computation and operated on over time. Continuous variables (CV) offer another potential benefit in the form of deterministic entanglement generation. This determinism can lead to robust cluster states and scalable quantum computation. Recent demonstrations of CV cluster states have made great strides on the path to scalability, utilizing either time or frequency multiplexing in optical parametric oscillators (OPO), both above and below threshold. The techniques relied on a combination of entangling operators and beam-splitter transformations. Here we show that an analogous transformation exists for amplifiers with Gaussian inputs states operating on multiple spatial modes. By judicious selection of local oscillators, the spatial mode distribution is analogous to the optical frequency comb consisting of axial modes in an OPO cavity. We outline an experimental system that generates cluster states across the spatial frequency comb, which can also scale the amount of quantum noise reduction to potentially larger than in other systems.
Abstract Multipartite entanglement is the crucial requirement for quantum information processing, quantum computation, quantum communication and quantum sensing. Therefore, the generation and characterization of such entanglement are primary goals in quantum technologies. Here we theoretically study the multipartite continuous-variable quadrature entanglement generated by three symmetric cascaded nonlinear optical systems. Such cascaded systems allow us to study the bipartite, tripartite and quadripartite entanglement. We use different continuous-variable entanglement criteria to characterize the entanglement. We observe that only a few bipartite combinations show the entanglement out of all possible combinations, while most tripartite combinations are entangled. Interestingly such a system depicts a full quadripartite entanglement. Moreover, we show that, unlike the quadrature sum-variance entanglement criterion, the negative partial transpose criterion can show the entanglement in most cases. The present comprehensive analysis of the generation and characterization of the continuous-variable entanglement with cascaded systems would pave the way to realizing a complex quantum network.
The characterisation of quantum correlations, also known as entanglement, is central to quantum information theory. Operationally, entanglement gives rise to the notion of quantum non-locality, which challenges the ‘reality’ of quantum mechanics (adopting the terminology of Einstein, Podolski and Rosen) and arguably represents its most distinctive feature, in the sense that it calls for a departure from certain foundational tenets of classical physics. It should thus not come as a surprise that entanglement turns out to be a key resource for the implementation of a number of quantum communication protocols and also necessary to achieve computational speed-ups with quantum hardware, in the sense that accessing regions of the Hilbert space with entangled states allows one to shorten the computational depth of certain algorithms. Not surprisingly, generating and maintaining entanglement is generally difficult in practice, as it requires strong interactions between selected components of a system that must at the same time be isolated from the environment. Thanks to the techniques developed in quantum optical set-ups to achieve squeezed light, entanglement is, however, comparatively accessible with optical quantum continuous variables. As we shall see, in fact, continuous variable entanglement is closely related to the notion of squeezing. It is therefore of the utmost importance to be able to qualify and quantify the entanglement of quantum continuous variables, which is the subject matter of the present chapter. The first part of the chapter is devoted to techniques and criteria based on second moments to detect the entanglement of Gaussian states and also to the description of possible ways to quantify such quantum correlations, bearing in mind that the determination of entanglement monotones of clear operational significance is still an open problem, even in the restricted arena of Gaussian states. Although the criteria based on second moments are sufficient, but not necessary, for the detection of non-Gaussian entanglement too, we will push our analysis further by introducing more general criteria based on higher order statistical moments, which will be put to use to detect, on paper, the quantum correlations of an entangled cat-like state. We will also address the issues of entanglement distillation and quantum non-locality tests, in whose contexts we shall encounter other non-Gaussian operations and states, such as photon-subtracted states.