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Quantum Information and Computation

Atomic spins as a storage medium for quantum fluctuations of light

Brian Julsgaard, C. Schori, Jens Lykke Sørensen, Eugene Simon Polzik

Published Oct 1, 2003• 8 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We review recent results showing the possibility to use off-resonant light/matter interaction for the purpose of quantum memory. A quantum state of atomic spins can be read out by light in a process which is a quantum analogue of the classical Faraday effect. Conversely, the dynamic Stark effect opens up the opportunity for recording the polarization state of light onto the atomic spin memory. We demonstrate that a sample of cesium atoms under appropriate conditions has the sensitivity to record properties of just a few photons, thus being a feasible candidate for quantum memory for light.

DOI
10.26421/qic3.s-5

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We review recent results showing the possibility to use off-resonant light/matter interaction for the purpose of quantum memory. A quantum state of atomic spins can be read out by light in a process which is a quantum analogue of the classical Faraday effect. Conversely, the dynamic Stark effect opens up the opportunity for recording the polarization state of light onto the atomic spin memory. We demonstrate that a sample of cesium atoms under appropriate conditions has the sensitivity to record properties of just a few photons, thus being a feasible candidate for quantum memory for light.
A reversible quantum memory allowing us to store and retrieve quantum information serves as a key necessity for implementing many of novel quantum information protocols. As light serves as a reliable long-range carrier of quantum information, and atoms offer the possibility of long storage times, current attempts at creating quantum memories focus on the transfer of the quantum fluctuations of light onto atomic coherences. The work in this thesis focuses on the development of a quantum memory for squeezed light using an ensemble of cold Cesium atoms stored in a magneto-optical trap. Our two major milestones were the development of a source of nonclassical light, and the development of a suitable atomic medium for storage. We first present the results of our efforts to generate a source of squeezed vacuum states resonant with the Cesium D2 line using a PPKTP nonlinear crystal inside of an optical parametric oscillator. Additionally, we characterize these squeezed states by carrying out a quantum state tomography using an iterative maximum likelihood approach. Next we look at the development of a new experiment which would allow us to use cold Cesium atoms as a storage medium in our recently developed magneto-optical trap. As this requires an array of novel tools and experimental techniques, we will discuss the development of these elements, and how they have furthered our progress towards storing quantum states onto our Cesium atoms, and eventually entangling two atomic ensembles.
Summary form only given. The spin polarized ground state of a cesium gas in a paraffin coated glass cell at room temperature has been recently used for generation of a long lived entangled state of atoms. In this paper we report on the first results towards using this medium as a quantum memory for polarization states of a light beam. The possibility of a reversible transfer of polarization states between light and atoms via interspecies teleportation protocols has been previously proposed. A narrowband tunable source of entangled light needed for such a transfer has been constructed before. We demonstrate that our set-up allows detection of the quantum state of light propagating through an atomic sample by means of observing the state of the long lived collective spin of the sample. For this purpose a polarization squeezed optical probe is prepared by mixing orthogonally polarized squeezed vacuum and coherent light with a variable phase on a polarizing beamsplitter.
We report an experiment on mapping a quantum state of light onto the ground state spin of an ensemble of Cs atoms with the lifetime of 2 ms. Recording of one of the two quadrature phase operators of light is demonstrated with vacuum and squeezed states of light. The sensitivity of the mapping procedure at the level of approximately 1 photon/sec per Hz is shown. The results pave the road towards complete (storing both quadrature phase observables) quantum memory for Gaussian states of light. The experiment also sheds new light on fundamental limits of sensitivity of the magneto-optical resonance method.
We present an experimentally feasible protocol for the complete storage and retrieval of arbitrary light states in an atomic quantum memory using the Faraday interaction between light and matter. Our protocol relies on multiple passages of a single light pulse through the atomic ensemble without the impractical requirement of kilometer-long delay lines between the passages. A time-dependent interaction strength enables the storage and retrieval of states with arbitrary pulse shapes. The fidelity approaches unity exponentially without squeezed or entangled initial states, as illustrated by calculations for a photonic qubit.
Abstract We have considered theoretically the feasibility of broadband quantum memory based on the resonant tripod-type atomic configuration. In this case, the writing of a signal field is carried out simultaneously into two channels, and characterized by an excitation of two spin waves of the atomic ensemble. With simultaneous read out from both channels, quantum properties of the original signal are mapped onto the retrieval pulse no worse than in the case of memory based on a Λ-type atomic configuration. At the same time new possibilities are opened up for the manipulation of quantum states associated with sequential reading out (and/or sequential writing) of signal pulses. For example, a pulse in the squeezed state is converted into two partially entangled pulses with partially squeezed quadratures. Alternatively, two independent signal pulses with orthogonally squeezed quadratures can be converted into two entangled pulses.
Interaction of quantum radiation with multi-particle ensembles has sparked off intense research efforts during the past decade. Emblematic of this field is the quantum memory scheme, where a quantum state of light is mapped onto an ensemble of atoms and then recovered in its original shape. While opening new access to the basics of light–atom interaction, quantum memory also appears as a key element for information processing applications, such as linear optics quantum computation and long-distance quantum communication via quantum repeaters. Not surprisingly, it is far from trivial to practically recover a stored quantum state of light and, although impressive progress has already been accomplished, researchers are still struggling to reach this ambitious objective. This special issue provides an account of the state-of-the-art in a fast-moving research area that makes physicists, engineers and chemists work together at the forefront of their discipline, involving quantum fields and atoms in different media, magnetic resonance techniques and material science. Various strategies have been considered to store and retrieve quantum light. The explored designs belong to three main—while still overlapping—classes. In architectures derived from photon echo, information is mapped over the spectral components of inhomogeneously broadened absorption bands, such as those encountered in rare earth ion doped crystals and atomic gases in external gradient magnetic field. Protocols based on electromagnetic induced transparency also rely on resonant excitation and are ideally suited to the homogeneous absorption lines offered by laser cooled atomic clouds or ion Coulomb crystals. Finally off-resonance approaches are illustrated by Faraday and Raman processes. Coupling with an optical cavity may enhance the storage process, even for negligibly small atom number. Multiple scattering is also proposed as a way to enlarge the quantum interaction distance of light with matter. The quest for higher efficiency, better fidelity, broader bandwidth, multimode capacity and longer storage lifetime is pursued in all those approaches, as shown in this special issue. The improvement of quantum memory operation specifically requires in-depth study and control of numerous physical processes leading to atomic decoherence. The present issue reflects the development of rare earth ion doped matrices offering long lifetime superposition states, either as bulk crystals or as optical waveguides. The need for quantum sources and high efficiency detectors at the single photon level is also illustrated. Several papers address the networking of quantum memories either in long-haul cryptography or in the prospect of quantum processing. In this context, much attention has been paid recently to interfacing quantum light with superconducting qubits and with nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond. Finally, the quantum interfacing of light with matter raises questions on entanglement. The last two papers are devoted to the generation of entanglement by dissipative processes. It is shown that long lifetime entanglement may be built in this way. We hope this special issue will help readers to become familiar with the exciting field of ensemble-based quantum memories and will stimulate them to bring deeper insights and new ideas to this area.