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Optics Letters

One- and two-photon quantum interferences in parametric four-wave mixing

José Ferraz, L. H. Acioli, S. S. Vianna

Published Jan 27, 2010• 4 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We report the observation of the interferometric response in parametric four-wave mixing in rubidium atoms excited by a pair of ultrashort pulses. For pulses with orthogonal polarizations and in the presence of the two-photon transition 5S-5D reveals a one-photon quantum interference, in contrast to the optical interference observed when the pulses have parallel polarization. For opposite circular polarizations no interference is observed in the fluorescence of the two-photon transition, in contrast to the one- and two-photon interferences exhibited in the nonlinear process.

DOI
10.1364/ol.35.000375

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We report the observation of the interferometric response in parametric four-wave mixing in rubidium atoms excited by a pair of ultrashort pulses. For pulses with orthogonal polarizations and in the presence of the two-photon transition 5S-5D reveals a one-photon quantum interference, in contrast to the optical interference observed when the pulses have parallel polarization. For opposite circular polarizations no interference is observed in the fluorescence of the two-photon transition, in contrast to the one- and two-photon interferences exhibited in the nonlinear process.
The interaction of a laser with potassium atoms is investigated by monitoring the radiation of the 5P-4S transition under the two-photon 4S(1/2)-6S(1/2) excitation. For low number density and laser intensity the observed radiation is parametric axial or conical, depending on the laser detuning from the two-photon resonance, the number density and the laser intensity. With increasing laser intensities and number densities, an additional delayed component is observed corresponding to a two-step four-wave mixing with the participation of internally generated photons. A two-photon quantum interference effect is observed for the total (axial and conical) parametric four-wave mixing emission. A deviation from the proposed model under certain experimental parameters is attributed to a two-step four-wave mixing and the phase mismatch of the parametric processes.
We investigate the nonlinear interaction between two photons in a single-input pulse at an atomic two-level nonlinearity. A one-dimensional model for the propagation of light to and from the atom is used to describe the precise spatiotemporal coherence of the two-photon state. It is shown that the interaction generates spatiotemporal entanglement in the output state similar to the entanglement observed in parametric down-conversion. A method of generating photon pairs from coherent pump light using this quantum-mechanical four-wave mixing process is proposed.
We present new results on the coherent control of a four-wave mixing signal in rubidium vapor involving Rydberg levels. By varying the relative polarizations of the laser beams responsible for the nonlinear process, we control atomic excitation routes and thus quantum interference in the medium. We observed interference fringes as a function of the relative polarizations and further developed a theoretical model based on the density-matrix formalism that is in very good agreement with our experimental results.
We have observed an interference in four-wave mixing involving two Rydberg states that play the key role of near two-photon resonant intermediate levels. This interference, due to the coherence of the nonlinear process, can be explained either classically or quantum mechanically and it depends on the lasers' polarizations and detunings. We have performed calculations that are in very good agreement with the experimental data. Our results provide new information about the system, such as ionization rates of the Rydberg levels and the ratio of reduced matrix elements involved.