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Ultrafast Phenomena and Nanophotonics

Generation of single-photon and two-photon pulses from a quantum two-level system (Conference Presentation)

Lukas Hanschke, Kevin A. Fischer, Jakob Wierzbowski, Stefan Appel, Daniil M. Lukin, Shuo Sun, Rahul Trivedi, Malte Kremser, Tobias Simmet, Constantin Dory, Jelena Vuckovic A, Jonathan James Finley, Kai Müller

Published Mar 5, 2019• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Due to their excellent optical properties, quantum dots are promising for applications in photonic quantum technologies. For on-demand single-photon generation, a two-level system given by an excitonic transition is typically excited with a resonant laser pulse of area π. This prepares the two-level system in its excited state from where it spontaneously emits a single photon. However, emission that occurs already during the presence of the laser pulse allows for re-excitation and, thus, multi-photon emission which limits the single-photon purity [1]. In contrast, when exciting the system with a pulse of area 2π, the system is expected to be returned to the ground state. However, in this case emission during the presence of the pulse is most likely to occur when the system is in its excited state – exactly after an area of π has been absorbed. This restarts the Rabi oscillation with a pulse area of π remaining in the pulse which leads to re-excitation with near-unity probability and the emission of a second photon within the excited state lifetime [2,3]. Finally, we present the generation of single photons with ultra-low multi-photon probability [4]. Using two-photon excitation of the bi-exciton suppresses re-excitation and improves the single photon purity by several orders of magnitude for short pulses. [1] K. A. Fischer, et al., New J. Phys. 18, 113053 (2016) [2] K. A. Fischer, et al., Nature Physics 13, 649-654 (2017) [3] K. A. Fischer, et al., Quantum Sci. Technol. 3, 014006 (2017) [4] L. Hanschke et al., arxiv: 1801.01672 (2018)

DOI
10.1117/12.2509918

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The Area Theorem states that when a short optical pulse drives a quantum two-level system, it undergoes Rabi oscillations in the probability of scattering a single photon. In this work, we investigate the breakdown of the Area Theorem as both the pulse length becomes non-negligible and for certain pulse areas. Using simple quantum trajectories, we provide an analytic approximation to the photon emission dynamics of a two-level system. Our model provides an intuitive way to understand re-excitation, which elucidates the mechanism behind the two-photon emission events that can spoil single-photon emission. We experimentally measure the emission statistics from a semiconductor quantum dot, acting as a two-level system, and show good agreement with our simple model for short pulses. Additionally, the model clearly explains our recent results [K. Fischer and L. Hanschke, et al., Nature Physics (2017)] showing dominant two-photon emission from a two-level system for pulses with interaction areas equal to an even multiple of $\pi$.

•Jan 1, 2018•28 citations
Due to their excellent optical properties, quantum dots are promising for applications in photonic quantum technologies. For on-demand single-photon generation, a two-level system given by an excitonic transition is typically excited with a resonant laser pulse of area π. This prepares the two-level system in its excited state from where it spontaneously emits a single photon. However, emission that occurs already during the presence of the laser pulse allows for re-excitation and, thus, multi-photon emission which limits the single-photon purity [1]. In contrast, when exciting the system with a pulse of area 2π, the system is expected to be returned to the ground state. However, in this case emission during the presence of the pulse is most likely to occur when the system is in its excited state – exactly after an area of π has been absorbed. This restarts the Rabi oscillation with a pulse area of π remaining in the pulse which leads to re-excitation with near-unity probability and the emission of a second photon within the excited state lifetime [2,3]. Finally, we present the generation of single photons with ultra-low multi-photon probability [4]. Using two-photon excitation of the bi-exciton suppresses re-excitation and improves the single photon purity by several orders of magnitude for short pulses. [1] K. A. Fischer, et al., New J. Phys. 18, 113053 (2016) [2] K. A. Fischer, et al., Nature Physics 13, 649-654 (2017) [3] K. A. Fischer, et al., Quantum Sci. Technol. 3, 014006 (2017) [4] L. Hanschke et al., arxiv: 1801.01672 (2018)
High-quality sources of single photons are of paramount importance for quantum communication, sensing and metrology. To these ends, resonantly excited two-level systems have recently generated widespread interest. Nevertheless, for resonantly excited two-level systems, emission of a photon during the presence of the excitation laser pulse and subsequent re-excitation results in a degradation of the obtainable single-photon purity [1]. Here, we investigate a two-photon excitation scheme based on a three-level system formed by the bi-exciton - exciton cascade in a self-assembled quantum dot and demonstrate that it improves the multi-photon error rate by several orders of magnitude [2]. We support our experiments with a new theoretical framework and simulation methodology to understand few-photon sources. For a resonantly excited two-level system the multi-photon error rate scales linear with the pulse length [3]. In contrast, the two-photon excitation scheme exhibits a quadratic dependence, improving the obtainable multi-photon error rate by several orders of magnitude for short pulses. Moreover, the scheme is easy to implement and facilitates fast repetition rates in contrast to schemes involving three-level lambda-type systems that require re-pumping. Unlike resonant excitation of a two-level system, this scheme does not require the measurement technique of cross-polarized suppression to reject the excitation laser and, thus, enables a higher source brightness. Finally, the scheme is directly compatible with increasing the emission rate by Purcell enhancement. [1] K.A. Fischer et al. Nature Physics 13, 649-654 (2017) [2] L. Hanschke, et al. arXiv:1801.01672 (2018) [3] K.A. Fischer, et al. Quantum Science and Technology 3, 1 (2017)
Abstract High-quality sources of single photons are of paramount importance for quantum communication, sensing, and metrology. To these ends, resonantly excited two-level systems based on self-assembled quantum dots have recently generated widespread interest. Nevertheless, we have recently shown that for resonantly excited two-level systems, emission of a photon during the presence of the excitation laser pulse and subsequent re-excitation results in a degradation of the obtainable single-photon purity. Here, we demonstrate that generating single photons from self-assembled quantum dots with a scheme based on two-photon excitation of the biexciton strongly suppresses the re-excitation. Specifically, the pulse-length dependence of the multi-photon error rate reveals a quadratic dependence in contrast to the linear dependence of resonantly excited two-level systems, improving the obtainable multi-photon error rate by several orders of magnitude for short pulses. We support our experiments with a new theoretical framework and simulation methodology to understand few-photon sources.
High-quality sources of single photons are of paramount importance for quantum communication, sensing and metrology. To these ends, resonantly excited two-level systems based on self-assembled quantum dots have recently generated widespread interest. Nevertheless, we have recently shown that for resonantly excited two-level systems, emission of a photon during the presence of the excitation laser pulse and subsequent re-excitation results in a degradation of the obtainable single-photon purity. Here, we demonstrate that generating single photons from self-assembled quantum dots with a scheme based on two-photon excitation of the biexciton strongly suppresses the re-excitation. Specifically, the pulse-length dependence of the multi-photon error rate reveals a quadratic dependence in contrast to the linear dependence of resonantly excited two-level systems, improving the obtainable multi-photon error rate by several orders of magnitude for short pulses. We support our experiments with a new theoretical framework and simulation methodology to understand few-photon sources.
Summary form only given. On-demand single-photon sources that produce a single photon as a response to a deterministic input are widely regarded as critical light sources for quantum key distribution, quantum repeaters, and quantum information science generally [1]. The wavepackets from such a source must have low probability to contain more than one photon, exist in a pure state so they may interfere with one another, and have a spatio-temporal profile that is appropriate for their application [2]. A very popular source for generating high quality single-photon wavepackets is the quantum two-level system, an artificial atom with one ground and one excited state, often implemented using solid-state quantum dots embedded within microcavities [3]. The two-level system is excited with a short resonant pulse of width τFWHM that prepares the system in its excited state, called a π-pulse, where it subsequently decays and emits a single photon with almost unity probability. Because the typical pulse lengths are orders of magnitude shorter than the lifetime of the system, it is often not appreciated that there is finite chance for an ideal two-level system to emit more than one photon at a time.
The area theorem states that when a short optical pulse drives a quantum two-level system, it undergoes Rabi oscillations in the probability of scattering a single photon. In this work, we investigate the breakdown of the area theorem as both the pulse length becomes non-negligible and for certain pulse areas. Using simple quantum trajectories, we provide an analytic approximation to the photon emission dynamics of a two-level system. Our model provides an intuitive way to understand re-excitation, which elucidates the mechanism behind the two-photon emission events that can spoil single-photon emission. We experimentally measure the emission statistics from a semiconductor quantum dot, acting as a two-level system, and show good agreement with our simple model for short pulses. Additionally, the model clearly explains our recent results (Fischer and Hanschke 2017 et al Nat. Phys. ) showing dominant two-photon emission from a two-level system for pulses with interaction areas equal to an even multiple of π .
The Area Theorem states that when a short optical pulse drives a quantum two-level system, it undergoes Rabi oscillations in the probability of scattering a single photon. In this work, we investigate the breakdown of the Area Theorem as both the pulse length becomes non-negligible and for certain pulse areas. Using simple quantum trajectories, we provide an analytic approximation to the photon emission dynamics of a two-level system. Our model provides an intuitive way to understand re-excitation, which elucidates the mechanism behind the two-photon emission events that can spoil single-photon emission. We experimentally measure the emission statistics from a semiconductor quantum dot, acting as a two-level system, and show good agreement with our simple model for short pulses. Additionally, the model clearly explains our recent results [K. Fischer and L. Hanschke, et al., Nature Physics (2017)] showing dominant two-photon emission from a two-level system for pulses with interaction areas equal to an even multiple of π\piπ.