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Annalen der Physik

A three‐level dark state and double‐control single‐photon logic gates via quantum coherent control

J.Q. Shen

Published Dec 20, 2011• 3 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract Multilevel quantum coherence and its quantum‐vacuum counterpart, where a three‐level dark state is involved, are suggested in order to achieve new photonic and quantum optical applications. It is shown that such a three‐level dark state in a four‐level tripod‐configuration atomic system consists of three lower levels, where constructive and destructive quantum interference between twocontroltransitions (driven by twocontrolfields) arises. We point out that the controllable optical response due to the double‐controltunablequantum interference can be utilized to design some fascinating new photonic devices such as logic gates, photonic transistors and switches at quantum level. A single‐photon two‐input XOR logic gate (in which the incident “gate” photons are the individual light quanta of the two control fields) based on such an effect of optical switching control with an EIT (electromagnetically induced transparency) microcavity is suggested as an illustrative example of the application of thedark‐state manipulationvia thedouble‐control quantum interference. The present work would open up possibility of new applications in both fundamental physics (e.g., field quantization and relevant quantum optical effects in artificial systems that can mimic atomic energy levels) and applied physics (e.g., photonic devices such as integrated optical circuits at quantum level).

DOI
10.1002/andp.201100183

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Abstract Multilevel quantum coherence and its quantum‐vacuum counterpart, where a three‐level dark state is involved, are suggested in order to achieve new photonic and quantum optical applications. It is shown that such a three‐level dark state in a four‐level tripod‐configuration atomic system consists of three lower levels, where constructive and destructive quantum interference between twocontroltransitions (driven by twocontrolfields) arises. We point out that the controllable optical response due to the double‐controltunablequantum interference can be utilized to design some fascinating new photonic devices such as logic gates, photonic transistors and switches at quantum level. A single‐photon two‐input XOR logic gate (in which the incident “gate” photons are the individual light quanta of the two control fields) based on such an effect of optical switching control with an EIT (electromagnetically induced transparency) microcavity is suggested as an illustrative example of the application of thedark‐state manipulationvia thedouble‐control quantum interference. The present work would open up possibility of new applications in both fundamental physics (e.g., field quantization and relevant quantum optical effects in artificial systems that can mimic atomic energy levels) and applied physics (e.g., photonic devices such as integrated optical circuits at quantum level).
A new scheme is suggested to manipulate the probe transitions (and hence the optical properties of atomic vapors) via double-control destructive and constructive quantum interferences. The influence of phase coherence between the two control transitions on the probe transition is also studied. The most remarkable feature of the present scheme is that the optical properties (absorption, transparency and dispersion) of an atomic system can be manipulated using this double-control multi-pathway interferences (multiple routes to excitation). It is also shown that a four-level system will exhibit a two-level resonant absorption because the two control levels (driven by the two control fields) form a dark state (and hence a destructive quantum interference occurs between the two control transitions). However, the present four-level system will exhibit electromagnetically induced transparency to the probe field when the three lower levels (including the probe level and the two control levels) form a three-level dark state. The present scenario has potential applications in new devices (e.g. logic gates and sensitive optical switches) and new techniques (e.g. quantum coherent information storage).
The author of this thesis concentrates his attention on quantum optical properties of some artificial electromagnetic media, such as quantum coherent atomic vapors (various multilevel electromagnetically induced transparency vapors) and negative refractive index materials, and suggests some possible ways to manipulate wave propagations inside the artificial electromagnetic materials based on quantum coherence and quantum vacuum effects. In Chapters 1 and 2, the author reviews the previous papers on quantum coherence as well as the relevant work such as electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT), atomic population trapping and their various applications. The basic concepts of quantum coherence (atomic phase coherence, quantum interferences within atomic energy levels) and quantum vacuum are introduced, and the theoretical formulations for treating wave propagations in quantum coherent media are presented. In Chapter 3, the author considers three topics on the manipulation of light propagations via quantum coherence and quantum interferences: i) the evolutional optical behaviors (turn-on dynamics) of a four-level N-configuration atomic system is studied and the tunable optical behavior that depends on the intensity ratio of the signal field to the control field is considered. Some typical photonic logic gates (e.g. NOT and NOR gates) are designed based on the tunable four-level optical responses of the N-configuration atomic system; ii) the destructive and constructive quantum interferences between two control transitions (driven by the control fields) in a tripod-type four-level system is suggested. The double-control quantum interferences can be utilized to realize some photonic devices such as the logic-gate devices, e.g., NOT, OR, NOR and EXNOR gates; iii) some new quantum coherent schemes (using EIT and dressed-state mixed-parity transitions) for realizing negative refractive indices are proposed. The most remarkable characteristic (and advantage) of the present scenarios is such that the isotropic left-handed media (with microscopic structure units at the atomic level) in the optical frequency band can be achieved. Quantum vacuum (the ground state of quantized fields) can exhibit many interesting effects. In Chapter 4, we investigate two quantum-vacuum effects in artificial materials: i) the anisotropic distribution of quantum-vacuum momentum density in a moving electromagnetic medium; ii) the angular momentum transfer between quantum vacuum and anisotropic medium. Such quantum-vacuum macroscopic mechanical effects could be detected by current technology, e.g., the so-called fiber optical sensor that can measure motion with nanoscale sensitivity. We expect that these vacuum effects could be utilized to develop sensitive sensor techniques or to design new quantum optical and photonic devices.In Chapter 5, the author suggests some interesting effects due to the combination of quantum coherence and quantum vacuum, i.e., the quantum coherent effects, in which the quantum-vacuum fluctuation field is involved. Two topics are addressed: i) spontaneous emission inhibition due to quantum interference in a three-level system; ii) quantum light-induced guiding potentials for coherent manipulation of atomic matter waves (containing multilevel atoms). These quantum guiding potentials could be utilized to cool and trap atoms, and may be used for the development of new techniques of atom fibers and atom chips, where the coherent manipulation of atomic matter waves is needed.In Chapter 6, we conclude this thesis with some remarks, briefly discuss new work that deserves further consideration in the future, and present a guide to the previously published papers by us.
An experimentally feasible scheme of a four-level atomic system driven by two microwaves and one optical field is suggested in order to realize destructive and constructive quantum interference between the two microwave-driven transition pathways and hence to coherently manipulate the applied optical field. The destructive quantum interference can be switched to the constructive interference and vice versa if one tunes the intensity ratio of the two microwaves. Such an effect of tunable optical response based on microwave quantum interference may have some potential applications to the technique for designing new photonic and quantum optical devices, e.g., photonic logic gates, optical switches, and photonic transistors.
Atomic coherence and interference manifested by electromagentically induced transparency (EIT) and coherent population trapping (CPT) plays an important role in the current studies of atom-photon interactions and has found numerous applications in optical physics. EIT is created in a three-level atomic system by a coupling field and results in destructive interference between two excitation paths of a weak probe laser interacting with the atomic medium. This leads to suppressed linear absorption and rapidly varying atomic dispersion for the probe laser near the atomic resonance, which provides the platform for a variety of applications such as nonlinear optics at low light levels, slow light manipulation, and quantum state engineering for photons and atoms. Here we extend the simple three-level EIT system to more complicated and versatile configurations in a multi-level atomic system coupled by multiple laser fields. We show that with multiple excitation paths provided by different laser fields, phase-dependent quantum interference is induced: either constructive or destructive interference can be realized by varying the relative phases among the laser fields. Two specific examples are discussed. One is a three-level system coupled by bichromatic coupling and probe fields, in which the phase dependent interference between the resonant two-photon Raman transitions can be initiated and controlled. Another is a four-level system coupled by two coupling fields and two probe fields, in which a double-EIT configuration is created by the phase-dependent interference between three-photon and one-photon excitation processes. We analyze the coherently coupled multi-level atomic system and discuss the control parameters for the onset of constructive or destructive quantum interference. We describe two experiments performed with cold Rb atoms that can be approximately treated as the coherently coupled three-level and four-level atomic systems respectively. The experimental results show the phase-dependent quantum coherence and interference in the multi-level Rb atomic system, and agree with the theoretical calculations based on the coherently coupled three-level or four-level model system.
A tripod-configuration four-level atomic system can exhibit nontrivial quantum destructive and constructive interference that could manipulate the optical response of an atomic vapour. It is shown that the tunable double-control electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) would be controlled via the quantum interference between two control fields interacting with the present atomic system. If a metallic waveguide is filled with such a double-control four-level atomic vapour, the quantum vacuum mode structure in the present EIT waveguide would have a novel influence on the atomic spontaneous emission decay (and hence on the EIT optical behavior). As the waveguide dimension change (i.e., the change in length scale of cross section of waveguide) can vary the vacuum mode structure, which can lead to spontaneous emission enhancement or inhibition, the optical response (including absorption and transparency induced by the tunable double-control quantum destructive and constructive interference) of the atomic vapour in the waveguide is quite sensitive to small change in the waveguide dimension caused by external environmental factors (such as electric signal voltage, environmental temperature change and acoustic pressure). The sensitive optical response based on the mechanisms of both double-control quantum interference and quantum-vacuum manipulation presented here may have some potential applications to the technique for designing new photonic and quantum optical devices.
The evolutional optical behaviours (turn-on dynamics) of a four-level double-control tripod-configuration (electromagnetically induced transparency) system are considered based on the transient solution to the equation of motion of the probability amplitudes of the atomic levels. As the most remarkable property (quantum interference between the two control transitions) will arise in the present tripod-configuration system, the transient evolution of the permittivity in cases of both destructive and constructive quantum interferences is presented. It can be shown that the four-level double-control vapour can become a destructive-interference medium, (exhibiting a two-level resonant absorption) and a constructive-interference medium, (exhibiting transparency to the probe field), respectively, under certain conditions (related to the ratio of the two control field intensities). The present double-control scenario can be applicable to designs of some new photonic and quantum optical devices such as logic and functional devices (logic gate circuits) and the key component of the technology of quantum coherent information storage.