We study state engineering through bilinear interactions between two remote qubits and two-mode gaussian light fields. The attainable two-qubit states span the entire physically allowed region in the entanglement-versus-global-purity plane. Two-mode gaussian states with maximal entanglement at fixed global and marginal entropies produce maximally entangled two-qubit states in the corresponding entropic diagram. We show that a small set of parameters characterizing extremally entangled two-mode gaussian states is sufficient to control the engineering of extremally entangled two-qubit states, which can be realized in realistic matter-light scenarios.
In this thesis, several new procedures for the generation and manipulation of entangled states in quantum optical systems are introduced. Each is evaluated in terms of realistic models of the imperfect apparatus of any real laboratory implementation. The first half of the thesis considers entanglement generation in Cavity QED, introducing several proposals for the creation of maximally entangled two-qubit states. The second half of the thesis focuses on the manipulation of entangled states of light pulses. In particular, an entanglement distillation procedure for Gaussian states is introduced. This combines a Procrustean protocol for the generation of highly entangled non-Gaussian states, with a "Gaussification" procedure, which allows more highly entangled approximately Gaussian states to be distilled from a non-Gaussian supply.
Here, we review some quantum architectures designed for the engineering of the N00N state, a bipartite maximally entangled state crucial in quantum metrology applications. The fundamental concept underlying these schemes is the transformation of the initial state ∣N⟩⊗∣0⟩ to the N00N state 21(∣N⟩⊗∣0⟩+∣0⟩⊗∣N⟩), where ∣N⟩ and ∣0⟩ are the Fock states with N and 0 excitations. We show that this state can be generated as a superposition of modes of quantum light, a combination of light and motion, or a superposition of two spin ensembles. The approach discussed here can generate mesoscopic and macroscopic entangled states, such as entangled coherent and squeezed states, as well. We show that a large class of maximally entangled states can be achieved in such an architecture. The extension of these state engineering methods to the multi-mode setting is also discussed.