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AVS Quantum Science

On-chip heralded single photon sources

Stefano Signorini, Lorenzo Pavesi

Published Oct 5, 2020• 85 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Time correlated photon pairs are used to produce heralded single photon states for quantum integrated circuits. These states are generated by photon sources, which are called heralded single photon sources. They are based on the detection of one photon which heralds the presence of the other. In this way, pure single photon states can be probabilistically generated and, subsequently, manipulated in complex photonic circuits. Heralded single photon sources are the topic of this review. The authors detail the main parameters and the experiments involved in their characterization, with a focus on their use in integrated photonic circuits. Different geometries and technological platforms are compared, and an assessment of their performances is performed. The final result is that nearly perfect single photon sources are possible and feasible in an integrated platform. A few open issues are also underlined.

DOI
10.1116/5.0018594

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Time correlated photon pairs are used to produce heralded single photon states for quantum integrated circuits. These states are generated by photon sources, which are called heralded single photon sources. They are based on the detection of one photon which heralds the presence of the other. In this way, pure single photon states can be probabilistically generated and, subsequently, manipulated in complex photonic circuits. Heralded single photon sources are the topic of this review. The authors detail the main parameters and the experiments involved in their characterization, with a focus on their use in integrated photonic circuits. Different geometries and technological platforms are compared, and an assessment of their performances is performed. The final result is that nearly perfect single photon sources are possible and feasible in an integrated platform. A few open issues are also underlined.
The non-deterministic nature of photon sources is a key limitation for single-photon quantum processors. Spatial multiplexing overcomes this by enhancing the heralded single-photon yield without enhancing the output noise. Here the intrinsic statistical limit of an individual source is surpassed by spatially multiplexing two monolithic silicon-based correlated photon pair sources in the telecommunications band, demonstrating a 62.4% increase in the heralded single-photon output without an increase in unwanted multipair generation. We further demonstrate the scalability of this scheme by multiplexing photons generated in two waveguides pumped via an integrated coupler with a 63.1% increase in the heralded photon rate. This demonstration paves the way for a scalable architecture for multiplexing many photon sources in a compact integrated platform and achieving efficient two-photon interference, required at the core of optical quantum computing and quantum communication protocols. Photonic quantum technologies will require efficient single-photon sources and spatial multiplexing has been explored as a route to achieve this. Here, the authors present a scheme to integrate several single-photon sources using spatial multiplexing for on-chip applications at telecommunications wavelengths.
On-chip heralded single photon sources are of key importance in the development of chip-scale devices exploiting the quantum properties of light. Single photon states can be produced as single photons heralded from correlated photon pairs generated through spontaneous four wave mixing. On-chip heralded single photon sources based on spontaneous four wave mixing have been already demonstrated. However, the heralded and herald photons are usually generated with wavelengths very close to the pump one, limiting the pump rejection efficiency and the application to the mid infrared. Moreover, the common sources of heralded photons based on spontaneous four wave mixing require spectral post filtering to achieve high purity, limiting the brightness and the integration of these sources. A solution to these problems can be provided by intermodal four wave mixing. In this work, we demonstrate the generation of photon pairs through intermodal four wave mixing in silicon waveguides, measuring the coincidences between the idler at 1.281 μm and the signal at 1.952 μm. We then discuss the application of intermodal four wave mixing to on-chip heralded single photon sources.
The goal of integrated quantum photonics is to combine components for the generation, manipulation, and detection of nonclassical light in a phase-stable and efficient platform. Solid-state quantum emitters have recently reached outstanding performance as single-photon sources. In parallel, photonic integrated circuits have been advanced to the point that thousands of components can be controlled on a chip with high efficiency and phase stability. Consequently, researchers are now beginning to combine these leading quantum emitters and photonic integrated circuit platforms to realize the best properties of each technology. In this paper, we review recent advances in integrated quantum photonics based on such hybrid systems. Although hybrid integration solves many limitations of individual platforms, it also introduces new challenges that arise from interfacing different materials. We review various issues in solid-state quantum emitters and photonic integrated circuits, the hybrid integration techniques that bridge these two systems, and methods for chip-based manipulation of photons and emitters. Finally, we discuss the remaining challenges and future prospects of on-chip quantum photonics with integrated quantum emitters.
We demonstrate a monolithic III-V photonic circuit combining a heralded single photon source with a beamsplitter, at room temperature and telecom wavelength. Pulsed parametric down-conversion in an AlGaAs waveguide generates counterpropagating photons, one of which is used to herald the injection of its twin into the beamsplitter. We use this configuration to implement an integrated Hanbury-Brown and Twiss experiment, yielding a heralded second-order correlation gher(2)(0)=0.10±0.02 that confirms single-photon operation. The demonstrated generation and manipulation of quantum states on a single III-V semiconductor chip opens promising avenues towards real-world applications in quantum information.
Quantum interference between identical photons lies at the heart of our plan to construct a silicon photonic quantum computer. Several ground-breaking experiments have demonstrated the on-chip interference between photons generated in spiral [1] and ring resonator [2] sources. However, these two-photon experiments have relied on detecting the simultaneous arrival of a pair of photons from either source. In order that such experiments can be scaled-up, we require the multiplexing of probabilistic photon pair sources into an on-demand single photon source [3]. A first step towards this is to demonstrate heralded single photons from different sources will retain the purity and indistinguishability required to interfere with high visibility [4]. In our work we examine photon pair production by spontaneous four-wave mixing in a silicon waveguide source and determine the factors that limit the heralded two-photon interference visibility. We present a novel approach to modelling this generation process using the joint- temporal amplitude and compare our results with experimental data. [1] On-chip quantum interference between silicon photon-pair sources, Nature Photonics 8, 104, (2014). [2] Qubit entanglement between ring-resonator photon-pair sources on a silicon chip, Nature Communications 6, 7948, (2015). [3] Active temporal and spatial multiplexing of photons, Optica 3, 127, (2016) [4] Indistinguishable photon pair generation using two independent silicon wire waveguides, New Journal of Physics 13, 065005, (2011).
Current sources of heralded single photons based on nonlinear optics operate in a probabilistic manner. In order to build quantum-enhanced devices based around the use of single photons, compact, turn-key and deterministic sources are required. A possible solution is to multiplex a number of sources to increase the single-photon generation probability and in so doing reducing the waiting time to deliver large numbers of photons simultaneously, from independent sources. Previously it has been shown that, in the ideal case, 17 multiplexed sources allow deterministic generation of heralded single photons [Christ and Silberhorn, Phys. Rev. A 85, 023829 (2012)]. Here we extend this analysis to include undesirable effects of detector inefficiency and photon loss on a number of multiplexed sources using a variety of different detectors for heralding. We compare these systems for fixed signal-to-noise ratio to allow a direct comparison of performance for real- world heralded single photon sources.