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Optics Express

The Hong-Ou-Mandel effect in the context of few-photon scattering

Paolo Longo, Jared H. Cole, Kurt Busch

Published May 16, 2012• 20 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The Hong-Ou-Mandel effect is studied in the context of two-photon transport in a one-dimensional waveguide with a single scatterer. We numerically investigate the scattering problem within a time-dependent, wave-function-based framework. Depending on the realization of the scatterer and its properties, we calculate the joint probability of finding both photons on either side of the waveguide after scattering. We specifically point out how Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometry techniques could be exploited to identify effective photon-photon interactions which are mediated by the scatterer. The Hong-Ou-Mandel dip is discussed in detail for the case of a single two-level atom embedded in the waveguide, and dissipation and dephasing are taken into account by means of a quantum jump approach.

DOI
10.1364/oe.20.012326

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An analysis of some aspects of photon transport through cavities and emitters embedded in a one-dimensional geometries is presented. The concept of photon blockade is defined for few-photon states interacting with a single two-level atom and the strength of achievable blockade is calculated in this setting. A brief review of some promising schemes for achieving photon blockade from the literature is also provided. The conflict between linear and nonlinear optical processes is studied for a novel version of the famous Hong-Ou-Mandel effect in a photonic waveguide with a side-coupled two-level emitter.

•Jul 1, 2013•0 citations
The Hong-Ou-Mandel effect is studied in the context of two-photon transport in a one-dimensional waveguide with a single scatterer. We numerically investigate the scattering problem within a time-dependent, wave-function-based framework. Depending on the realization of the scatterer and its properties, we calculate the joint probability of finding both photons on either side of the waveguide after scattering. We specifically point out how Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometry techniques could be exploited to identify effective photon-photon interactions which are mediated by the scatterer. The Hong-Ou-Mandel dip is discussed in detail for the case of a single two-level atom embedded in the waveguide, and dissipation and dephasing are taken into account by means of a quantum jump approach.
Optical emitters strongly coupled to photons propagating in one-dimensional waveguides are a promising platform for optical quantum information processing. Here, we present a theoretical study of the scattering of two indistinguishable photons on a single two-level atom in a Hong-Ou-Mandel setup. By computing the dynamics, we can describe the system at any time of the scattering event. This allows us to highlight the one-to-one correspondence between the saturation of the atom and the effective interaction induced between the photons. Furthermore, we discuss the integrability of the atomic beam splitter and provide an intuitive picture for the correlations observed between the outgoing photons.
We present a quantum jump/trajectory analysis of the two-photon interference phenomenon in the context of the Hong–Ou–Mandel (HOM) effect. In particular, we consider the standard setup of the HOM effect, which consists of two-photon sources firing single photons from opposite sides of a 50/50 beam splitter and two perfect detectors placed at the output ports to record photodetection events. For single-photon sources, we consider two special cases: (1) two excited two-level atoms and (2) two atom–cavity setups with initially present single photons in both cavities. For both cases, we report analytic results as well as quantum jump-based Monte Carlo simulations to demonstrate the signatures of these single-photon sources on the HOM effect under different working conditions (e.g., strong- and weak-coupling regimes of cavity quantum electrodynamics). The HOM effect offers applications in the areas of linear optics quantum computing, as well as in protocols that test the indistinguishability of single-photon sources.
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.
Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) effect is known to be one of the main phenomena in quantum optics. The effect occurs when two identical single-photon waves enter a 1:1 beam splitter, one in each input port. When the photons are identical, they will extinguish each other. One of the main elements of the HOM interferometer is the beam splitter, which has its own coefficients of reflection R=1/2R = 1/2R=1/2 and transmission $ T = 1/2 $. In this work, the general mechanism of the interaction of two photons in a beam splitter is considered using an analytical solution, which shows that in the HOM theory of the effect it is necessary to know (including when planning the experiment) not only $ R = 1/2 $ and $ T = 1/2 $, but also their root-mean-square fluctuations $ ΔR ^ 2, ΔT ^ 2 $, which arise due to the dependence of $R = R(ω_1, ω_2) $ and $ T = T (ω_1, ω_2) $ on the frequencies where ω1,ω2ω_1, ω_2ω1​,ω2​ are the frequencies of the first and second photons, respectively. Under certain conditions, specifically when the dependence of the fluctuations $ ΔR^2 $ and $ ΔT^2 $ can be neglected and $ R=T=1/2 $ is chosen, the developed theory coincides with previously known results.
Controlling light at the level of individual photons has led to advances in fields ranging from quantum information and precision sensing to fundamental tests of quantum mechanics. A central development that followed the advent of single-photon sources was the observation of the Hong–Ou–Mandel (HOM) effect, a novel two-photon path interference phenomenon experienced by indistinguishable photons. The effect is now a central technique in the field of quantum optics, harnessed for a variety of applications such as diagnosing single-photon sources and creating probabilistic entanglement in linear quantum computing. Recently, several distinct experiments using atomic sources have realized the requisite control to observe and exploit Hong–Ou–Mandel interference of atoms. This chapter provides a summary of this phenomenon and discusses some of its implications for atomic systems. Transitioning from the domain of photons to atoms opens new perspectives on fundamental concepts, such as the classification of entanglement of identical particles. It aids in the design of novel probes of quantities such as entanglement entropy by combining well-established tools of AMO physics—unity single-atom detection, tunable interactions, and scalability—with the Hong–Ou–Mandel interference. Furthermore, it is now possible for established protocols in the photon community, such as measurement-induced entanglement, to be employed in atomic experiments that possess deterministic single-particle production and detection. Hence, the realization of the HOM effect with atoms represents a productive union of central ideas in quantum control of atoms and photons.
An analysis of some aspects of photon transport through cavities and emitters embedded in a one-dimensional geometries is presented. The concept of photon blockade is defined for few-photon states interacting with a single two-level atom and the strength of achievable blockade is calculated in this setting. A brief review of some promising schemes for achieving photon blockade from the literature is also provided. The conflict between linear and nonlinear optical processes is studied for a novel version of the famous Hong-Ou-Mandel effect in a photonic waveguide with a side-coupled two-level emitter.