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Physical Review A

Semiconductor-cavity QED-based optical beam splitter

Wen-Xi Lai, Hongcai Li, Xiu Ru Lin, Xiang Chen

Published Feb 25, 2009• 3 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We theoretically demonstrate that a photonic crystal microcavity coupled to waveguides works as an optical beam splitter. Numerical simulations illustrate that spatially separated two output modes have a relative phase close to $\ensuremath{\pi}/2$ and tunable transmission coefficients. The general transformation of this beam splitter gives a single-qubit rotation operator about the $x$ axis. Using such beam splitters, we show single-photon interference via the Mach-Zehnder interferometer and two-photon entanglement via Hong-Ou-Mandel effect. This system may have great applications in constructing interferometers and integrated circuits for optical quantum information processing with solid-state materials.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.79.023832

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We theoretically demonstrate that a photonic crystal microcavity coupled to waveguides works as an optical beam splitter. Numerical simulations illustrate that spatially separated two output modes have a relative phase close to \ensuremathπ/2\ensuremath{\pi}/2\ensuremathπ/2 and tunable transmission coefficients. The general transformation of this beam splitter gives a single-qubit rotation operator about the xxx axis. Using such beam splitters, we show single-photon interference via the Mach-Zehnder interferometer and two-photon entanglement via Hong-Ou-Mandel effect. This system may have great applications in constructing interferometers and integrated circuits for optical quantum information processing with solid-state materials.
A beam splitter is a key component used to direct and combine light paths in various optical and microwave systems. It plays a crucial role in devices like interferometers, such as the Mach–Zehnder and Hong–Ou–Mandel setups, where it splits light into different paths for interference measurements. These measurements are vital for precise phase and coherence testing in both classical and quantum optical experiments. In this work, we present a nonlinear beam splitter and beam combiner utilizing a frequency-tunable superconducting artificial atom in a one-dimensional open waveguide. Probed with coherent states at the single-photon level (average photon number ⟨N⟩ ≪1), this device demonstrates highly tunable transparency, ranging from near unity to complete reflection. Additionally, the beam combiner can merge two coherent beams, generating interference fringes as the relative phase between them varies.
We propose a quantum beam splitter (QBS) with tunable reflection and transmission coefficients. More importantly, our device based on a Hermitian parity-time (PT\mathcal{PT}PT) symmetric system enables the generation and manipulation of asymmetric quantum coherence of the output photons. For the interference of two weak coherent-state inputs, our QBS can produce anti-bunched photons from one output port and bunched photons from the other, showcasing high parity asymmetry and strong coherence control capabilities. Beyond the Hong-Ou-Mandel effect, perfect photon blockade with vanishing g(2)(0)g^{(2)}(0)g(2)(0) is achievable in two-photon interference. These striking effects of the QBS fundamentally arise from the parity-symmetry-breaking interaction and the quantum interference between the photon scattering channels. Our results could inspire novel applications and the development of innovative photonic devices for the manipulation of weak quantum light.
We propose a quantum beam splitter (QBS) with tunable reflection and transmission coefficients. More importantly, our device based on a Hermitian parity-time (PT)(\mathcal{PT})(PT) symmetric system enables the generation and manipulation of asymmetric quantum coherence of the output photons. For the interference of two weak coherent-state inputs, our QBS can produce antibunched photons from one output port and bunched photons from the other, showcasing high parity asymmetry and strong coherence control capabilities. Beyond the Hong-Ou-Mandel effect, perfect photon blockade with vanishing g(2)(0){g}^{(2)}(0)g(2)(0) is achievable in two-photon interference. These striking effects of the QBS fundamentally arise from the parity-symmetry-breaking interaction and the quantum interference between the photon scattering channels. Our results could inspire novel applications and the development of innovative photonic devices for the manipulation of weak quantum light.
We realized a polarization-independent split-ratio-tunable optical beam splitter supporting two input and output ports through a stable interferometer. By adjusting the angle of a half-wave plate in the interferometer, we can tune the beam splitter reflectivities for both input ports from 0 to 1, regardless of the input light polarization. High-fidelity polarization-preserving transmission from input to output ports was verified by complete quantum process tomography. Nearly optimal interference effects at the beam splitter with various split ratios were observed by two-photon Hong-Ou-Mandel interference for different input polarization states. Such a beam splitter could find a variety of applications in classical and quantum optical technologies.
We investigate the two-photon scattering properties of a Jaynes-Cummings (JC) nonlinearity consisting of a two-level system (qubit) interacting with a single-mode cavity, which is coupled to two waveguides, each containing a single incident photon wave packet initially. In this scattering setup, we study the interplay between the Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) effect arising due to quantum interference and effective photon-photon interactions induced by the presence of the qubit. We calculate the two-photon scattering matrix of this system analytically and identify signatures of interference and interaction in the second-order auto- and cross-correlation functions of the scattered photons. In the dispersive regime, when qubit and cavity are far detuned from each other, we find that the JC nonlinearity can be used as an almost linear, in situ tunable beam splitter giving rise to ideal Hong-Ou-Mandel interference, generating a highly path-entangled two-photon NOON state of the scattered photons. The latter manifests itself in strongly suppressed waveguide cross-correlations and Poissonian photon number statistics in each waveguide. If the two-level system and the cavity are on resonance, the JC nonlinearity strongly modifies the ideal HOM conditions leading to a smaller degree of path entanglement and sub-Poissonian photon number statistics. In the latter regime, we find that photon blockade is associated with bunched autocorrelations in both waveguides, while a two-polariton resonance can lead to bunched as well as antibunched correlations.
Two-photon interference effects arise because photons are indistinguishable particles. In the wellknown Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) effect, the transmission of two photons at a beam splitter interferes destructively with the reflection of both photons, requiring both photons to "bunch up" by leaving the beam splitter on the same side. Here, we show that the interference between locally propagating photons and photons exchanged by a mode swap can be implemented by post-selecting spatially separated photon outputs of a four-path interferometer. Even though the photons detected at spatially separated locations must have travelled along paths that never met up at the same beam splitter, the Hong-Ou-Mandel effect can be observed in correlations between the output ports that originate from the association of detection events with non-local output modes defined by the two single photon inputs. Local phase shifts can be used to map out non-classical correlations between the photons detected at different output locations, clarifying the role of linear optics in generating entanglement between spatially separated photons. Our work thus establishes a fundamental relation between multiphoton interference and entanglement, opening the door to new possibilities in optical quantum technologies.