Quantum information science relies on the feature of distant quantum entities (mostly "qubits") to form non-local states. A main challenge consists of generating such non-local entangled states between qubits. We exploit the fact that for coupled qubits, the eigenstates of the coupled system are usually highly entangled, and of different excitation energies. This allows to address the different entangled eigenstates by frequency-dependent control schemes. In our proposal, we present such a control mechanism, and demonstrate how it can be used to create entanglement from a fully separable initial state. The mechanism of our choice is time-delayed quantum-coherent feedback. If a qubit occupation decays via the emission of a photon, one can store this photon for a delay time τ and couple the radiation back into the qubit afterwards. Through the choice of τ, one can set the phase of the feedback, which will then lead to either an increased or decreased qubit decay. Since this phase depends on sin(ωτ), this effect strongly depends on the qubit frequency ω. In particular, it can be used to separate different entangled states in a quantum network by enhancing the decay of all entangled eigenstates except one. We discuss this protocol on the example of two coupled qubits, and analyze in detail its effectiveness depending on the feedback delay time τ.
Quantum information science relies on the feature of distant quantum entities (mostly "qubits") to form non-local states. A main challenge consists of generating such non-local entangled states between qubits. We exploit the fact that for coupled qubits, the eigenstates of the coupled system are usually highly entangled, and of different excitation energies. This allows to address the different entangled eigenstates by frequency-dependent control schemes. In our proposal, we present such a control mechanism, and demonstrate how it can be used to create entanglement from a fully separable initial state. The mechanism of our choice is time-delayed quantum-coherent feedback. If a qubit occupation decays via the emission of a photon, one can store this photon for a delay time τ and couple the radiation back into the qubit afterwards. Through the choice of τ, one can set the phase of the feedback, which will then lead to either an increased or decreased qubit decay. Since this phase depends on sin(ωτ), this effect strongly depends on the qubit frequency ω. In particular, it can be used to separate different entangled states in a quantum network by enhancing the decay of all entangled eigenstates except one. We discuss this protocol on the example of two coupled qubits, and analyze in detail its effectiveness depending on the feedback delay time τ.
We investigate the entanglement dynamics of two two-level emitters (qubits) mediated by a semi-infinite, one-dimensional photonic waveguide. The coupling of each qubit to the waveguide is chiral, which depends on the propagation direction of light. The finite end of the waveguide is terminated by a perfect mirror such that coherent quantum feedback is introduced to the system. We show that the chirally generated entanglement between the qubits can be preserved by controlling the time delay of the feedback. Moreover, when the time delay is negligible, the qubit-qubit reduced system evolves within the strong-coupling regime and the qubits can be almost maximally entangled. We also analyze the robustness of the protocol against variations of some relevant parameters.
We propose to use a time-delayed quantum-coherent feedback mechanism to increase and control the entanglement of photon pairs emitted by a quantum dot biexciton cascade. The quantum dot biexciton cascade is a well-known source of entangled photons on demand, however excitonic fine-structure splitting decreases the achievable polarization entanglement. We demonstrate that feedback can change the spectrum of the emitted photons in a way that the entanglement is either strongly increased or decreased, depending on the feedback time and phase. We analyze the dependence on parameters such as the delay time and the robustness of the proposed mechanism.
Abstract The no-knowledge quantum feedback, introduced in Phys. Rev. Lett., 113, 020407 (2014), is a measurement-based feedback protocol for decoherence suppression in a quantum system coupled to noisy environment. By continuously measuring the environmental noise, without directly gathering any information about the system, the decoherence effect can be suppressed by feeding back quantum controls proportional to the measured signal. In the original work, the feedback control was assumed instantaneous, leading to perfect cancellation of noise backaction on the quantum system. However, the instantaneous feedback is difficult to achieve in practice, and close-loop feedback protocols are always associated with finite delayed time. Therefore, in this work, we consider the effects of the delay between the time at which the measurement signal is acquired and the time that such signal is fed back to the system. We investigate the problem with an example of a two-level system (qubit) coupled to a Markovian reservoir, via a Hermitian coupling operator, where a homodyne detection is used to measure the environmental noise. We numerically simulate quantum stochastic trajectories of the qubit and analyse their averaged dynamics. We find that the feedback control with time delay can either enhance or reduce the decoherence effects, depending on whether the delayed time is in-phase or out-of-phase with the unitary dynamics of the qubit system.
This thesis discusses the dynamics of quantum-optical systems located in complex, non-markovian photonic environments, using numerical simulations as well as analytical derivations. The main focus lies on time-delayed quantum-coherent feedback effects of the Pyragas type, in analogy to effects well-known in classical physics. Time-delayed feedback is treated as a specific kind of a non-markovian environment. Additionally, the control of qubit entanglement in optical cavities is studied. The thesis consists of three main parts: After an overview of the important concepts of quantum optics, advanced methods for the description and numerical treatment of time-delayed quantum-coherent feedback are presented. The main focus lies on the development of a pseudomode-based approach, which describes time-delayed feedback as the coupling to a complex network of lossy harmonic oscillators. Additionally, further methods for numerical simplification are presented, in particular nonlinear expectation value dynamics for the treatment of arbitrary non-markovian reservoirs, as well as the use of input-output theory for time-delayed feedback. In the second part, applications of time-delayed feedback to control quantum statistics are discussed. First it is demonstrated that time-delayed feedback can be used to create and sustain entanglement between coupled qubits. This approach will then be extended to larger networks of qubits. Afterwards, feedback control is applied to nonlinear quantum-optical systems: It is shown how to use it for the stabilization of Fock states in a cavity containing a Kerr medium, and this analysis is expanded to a cavity containing a two-level system. Furthermore, it is shown how time-delayed feedback can be used to control and enhance the entanglement of photons emitted in a biexciton cascade. In the third and last part, the non-equilibrium dynamics of qubits coupled to a photonic environment consisting of high-Q cavities subject to periodic driving are discussed. First, the connection between bistability and entanglement in a cavity containing two qubits is analyzed. Next a setup of two coupled cavities, containing a qubit each, is examined. The influence of a third cavity in between the two other cavities, simulating a delay line, is analyzed. Furthermore, a protocol is developed on how to overcome dephasing between the two qubits, using a resonant Raman scattering process. It is shown that this protocol can create and sustain high values of entanglement, and is ready to be extended to systems of more than two qubits.
In a solid-state platform for quantum information science, the biexciton cascade is an important source of entangled photons. However, the entanglement is usually reduced considerably by the fine-structure splitting of the exciton levels. We show how to counteract this loss of entanglement by applying optical feedback. Substantial control and enhancement of photon entanglement can be achieved by coherently feeding back a part of the emitted signal, e.g., by a mirror, and by tuning the feedback phase and delay time. We present full quantum-mechanical calculations, which include the external photon mode continuum, and discuss the mechanisms leading to the above effects.
We study the dynamics of photonic quantum circuits consisting of nodes coupled by quantum channels. We are interested in the regime where the time delay in communication between the nodes is significant. This includes the problem of quantum feedback, where a quantum signal is fed back on a system with a time delay. We develop a matrix product state approach to solve the quantum stochastic Schrödinger equation with time delays, which accounts in an efficient way for the entanglement of nodes with the stream of emitted photons in the waveguide, and thus the non-Markovian character of the dynamics. We illustrate this approach with two paradigmatic quantum optical examples: two coherently driven distant atoms coupled to a photonic waveguide with a time delay, and a driven atom coupled to its own output field with a time delay as an instance of a quantum feedback problem.