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Efficient generation of new optical wavelengths by means of second harmonic generation in AlGaAs Bragg reflection waveguides

Adam Vallés Marí

Published Sep 19, 2011• 0 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

English: In this project has been designed and implemented a setup to produce the nonlinear process of the second harmonic generation (SHG) in Bragg reflection waveguides (BRW). Starting with the adjustment of a tunable single frequency laser at 1550 with an external cavity configuration. Two diferent types of SHG have been observed, we measured their spectrum and its shifting caused by temperature variations. Finally, it has also been observed the spatial shape of the Bragg mode guided along the BRW, which is the responsible for reaching the phase-matching condition between all the waves involved in this non-linear process. The results obtained in this project will be used in a future experiments, specially, in the implementation of a monolithic integrated source of entangled photon pairs generated by using the spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) process.

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Generation of polarization entangled photon pairs in Bragg reflection waveguides

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We report the observation of polarization entangled photon pairs generated by means of type-II spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) within an Al x Ga 1-x As Bragg reflection waveguide (BRW).Even though SPDC in BRW had been observed before, the photons detected were not entangled in the polarization degree of freedom.As a necessary previous step, we also characterized the phasematching properties of the waveguides designed by means of the nonlinear process of second-harmonic generation (SHG).

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AlGaAs Bragg reflection waveguides are promising systems for the generation of single and entangled photons through the process of spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) [1]. We use a type II SPDC process where the downconverted photons are orthogonally polarized. The produced photons are inherently polarization-entangled eliminating the need for any additional entanglement setup. The material AlGaAs is our preferred choice as a nonlinear medium because it features a high nonlinear coefficient allowing for room temperature operation and has the advantage of being a non-birefringent material. Further, the material platform allows for the direct integration of a pump laser into the same chip.

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•May 4, 2011•2 citations
English: In this project has been designed and implemented a setup to produce the nonlinear process of the second harmonic generation (SHG) in Bragg reflection waveguides (BRW). Starting with the adjustment of a tunable single frequency laser at 1550 with an external cavity configuration. Two diferent types of SHG have been observed, we measured their spectrum and its shifting caused by temperature variations. Finally, it has also been observed the spatial shape of the Bragg mode guided along the BRW, which is the responsible for reaching the phase-matching condition between all the waves involved in this non-linear process. The results obtained in this project will be used in a future experiments, specially, in the implementation of a monolithic integrated source of entangled photon pairs generated by using the spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) process.
We report the observation of polarization entangled photon pairs generated by means of type-II spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) within an Al x Ga 1-x As Bragg reflection waveguide (BRW).Even though SPDC in BRW had been observed before, the photons detected were not entangled in the polarization degree of freedom.As a necessary previous step, we also characterized the phasematching properties of the waveguides designed by means of the nonlinear process of second-harmonic generation (SHG).
AlGaAs Bragg reflection waveguides are promising systems for the generation of single and entangled photons through the process of spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) [1]. We use a type II SPDC process where the downconverted photons are orthogonally polarized. The produced photons are inherently polarization-entangled eliminating the need for any additional entanglement setup. The material AlGaAs is our preferred choice as a nonlinear medium because it features a high nonlinear coefficient allowing for room temperature operation and has the advantage of being a non-birefringent material. Further, the material platform allows for the direct integration of a pump laser into the same chip.
In this paper, we present Bragg reflection waveguides as a novel universal platform for reaching the phasematching of spontaneous parametric downconversion process in semiconductor materials. We have designed two different waveguide structures. The first one is based on AlGaN and it is able to produce spectrally uncorrelated photon pairs. The second one is based on AlGaAs and it allows us to generate entangled photon pairs with ultra-broad spectra. Spontaneous-parametric-downconversion and second-harmonic-generation experiments are presented.
In this thesis, I overcome the challenges and fill the gaps in knowledge for the design and analysis of photonic crystal slab waveguides (PCSWs) as spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) sources of photon-pairs, as well as to investigate their potential for engineering the properties of the photon-pair quantum state. I have developed the required formalism for analyzing both the quantum process of SPDC and its classical counterpart of second-harmonic generation (SHG). In studying SHG, I verified my formalism through comparing its results with direct nonlinear simulations. In these formulations, special attention was given to treating lossy modes, as they prove to be an inherent part of the SPDC designs in PCSWs. Moreover, I have found a practical set of PCSW designs, phase-matched for three-wave-mixing processes, while demonstrating that PCSWs can offer a strong control over the phase-matching configuration. This includes reaching phase-matching between modes of different propagation directions, reaching simultaneous phase-matching between multiple processes, and controlling the group velocity of the modes at the point of phase-matching. These capabilities proved to be the key to discovering the unique strength of PCSWs for the SPDC application. Through the use of various phase-matching configurations, I showed how compact SPDC sources can be designed using PCSWs that are capable of creating entanglement and tuning its extent in different degrees of freedom, with specific examples for path and spectral degrees of entanglement, all in a fully integrated way and directly at the generation step. This work also includes my experimental results on characterizing lithium niobate nanostructured ridge waveguides, demonstrating phase-matched SHG. Finally, I propose the concept of atom-mediated SPDC, for interfacing a single-emitter source with a photon-pair source, relying on the bandgap evanescent modes of a periodic waveguide.
Entangled photons are important for testing foundations of quantum physics and are at the heart of quantum technology. Integrated photonics has overwhelming dominance in terms of density and performance, making it a promise route for scalable quantum information processing. AlGaAs-based materials having large second-order non-linearities, direct bandgap and strong electro-optical effect can offer distinct advantages in quantum light source. Here we report a non-ideal quarter-wavelength Bragg reflection waveguide for generating three types of spontaneous parametric down-conversion processes. A general solution to the dispersion equation is derived and employed for designing high efficiency devices by taking into account the influence of core layer aluminium concentration. We further design and fabricate a Bragg reflection waveguide sample based on the analysis, and experimentally characterize its phase matching types and spectral brightness. Our work paves the path for the development of portable quantum light sources.
This thesis describes various methods for producing photon pairs from waveguides. It covers relevant topics such as waveguide coupling and phase matching, along with the relevant measurement techniques used to infer photon pair production. A new proposal to solve the phase matching problem is described along with two conceptual methods for generating entangled photon pairs. Photon pairs are also experimentally demonstrated from a third novel structure called a Bragg Reflection Waveguide (BRW). \n \nThe new proposal to solve the phase matching problem is called Directional Quasi-Phase Matching (DQPM). It is a technique that exploits the directional dependence of the non-linear susceptiblity (chi(2)\\chi^{(2)}chi(2)) tensor. It is aimed at those materials that do not allow birefringent phase-matching or periodic poling. In particular, it focuses on waveguides in which the interplay between the propagation direction, electric field polarizations and the nonlinearity can change the strength and sign of the nonlinear interaction periodically to achieve quasi-phasematching. \n \nOne of the new conceptual methods for generating entangled photon pairs involves a new technique that sandwiches two waveguides from two differently oriented but similar crystals together. The idea stems from the design of a Michelson interferometer which interferes the paths over which two unique photon pair processes can occur, thereby creating entanglement in any pair of photons created in the interferometer. By forcing or sandwiching the two waveguides together, the physical space that exists in the standard Micheleson type interferometer is made non-existent, and the interferometer is effectively squashed. The result is that the two unique photon pair processes actually occupy the same physical path. This benefits the stability of the interferometer in addition to miniaturizing it. The technical challenges involved in sandwiching the two waveguides are briefly discussed. \n \nThe main result of this thesis is the observation of photon pairs from the BRW. By analyzing the time correlation between two single photon detection events, spontaneous parametric down conversion (SPDC) of a picosecond pulsed ti:sapph laser is demonstrated. The process is mediated by a ridge BRW. The results show evidence for type-0, type-I and type-II phase matching of pump light at 783nm, 786nm and 789nm to down converted light that is strongly degenerate at 1566nm, 1572nm, and 1578nm respectively. The inferred efficiency of the BRW was 9.8$\\cdot101010^{-9}$ photon pairs per pump photon. This contrasts with the predicted type-0 efficiency of 2.65$\\cdot101010^{-11}$. This data is presented for the first time in such waveguides, and represents significant advances towards the integration of sources of quantum information into the existing telecommunications infrastructure.