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Science

A dynamic quantum memory

Ian S. Osborne

Published Feb 11, 2021• 1 citation
Publisher

Abstract

Quantum Networks Photons, being robust and fast, are ideal carriers of quantum information in long-distance quantum networks. For a practical communication platform, the photons also need to be manipulated at the local level at nodes or exchange points across the network, and this requires information to be reliably encoded, stored, and retrieved from the photonic qubits. Craiciu et al. demonstrate such functionality using an ensemble of erbium ions embedded within a solid-state matrix of yttrium orthosilicate. With the ions operating as a dynamic quantum memory for photons at communication wavelengths and the approach being compatible with integrated photonics, the results offer promise for possible integration into large-scale optical fiber networks. Optica 8 , 114 (2021).

DOI
10.1126/science.371.6530.688-e

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Quantum Networks
Photons, being robust and fast, are ideal carriers of quantum information in long-distance quantum networks. For a practical communication platform, the photons also need to be manipulated at the local level at nodes or exchange points across the network, and this requires information to be reliably encoded, stored, and retrieved from the photonic qubits. Craiciu et al. demonstrate such functionality using an ensemble of erbium ions embedded within a solid-state matrix of yttrium orthosilicate. With the ions operating as a dynamic quantum memory for photons at communication wavelengths and the approach being compatible with integrated photonics, the results offer promise for possible integration into large-scale optical fiber networks.
Optica 8 , 114 (2021).
Physics Photons are ideal carriers of information. They are fast and coherent, and because they don't interact much with each other they can have very long lifetimes. However, stopping, processing, and manipulating the photons requires them to be stored in a memory, where doing so can damage their fragile quantum properties, which leads to a loss of coherence. Although photons have been coherently stored in and retrieved from ensembles of atom gases, both warm and cold atom clouds, for practical applications a solid-state memory would be desired. Heinze et al. have developed a method to enhance the storage time of photons in a rare-earth–ion—doped crystal. They use a series of laser pulses to initialize the crystal for photon storage and then load it with their “information photons.” By iteratively optimizing the experimental parameters, they show that they can store light pulses and even entire images in the crystal and then retrieve them up to a minute later with their coherent properties intact. The results present an important step toward building a viable quantum network. Phys. Rev. Lett. 111 , 033601(2013).
Optical photons are powerful carriers of quantum information, which can be delivered in free space by satellites or in fibers on the ground over long distances. Entanglement of quantum states over long distances can empower quantum computing, quantum communications, and quantum sensing. Quantum optical memories are devices designed to store quantum information in the form of stationary excitations, such as atomic coherence, and are capable of coherently mapping these excitations to flying qubits. Quantum memories can effectively store and manipulate quantum states, making them indispensable elements in future long-distance quantum networks. Over the past two decades, quantum optical memories with high fidelities, high efficiencies, long storage times, and promising multiplexing capabilities have been developed, especially at the single-photon level. In this review, we introduce the working principles of commonly used quantum memory protocols and summarize the recent advances in quantum memory demonstrations. We also offer a vision for future quantum optical memory devices that may enable entanglement distribution over long distances.
Optical quantum memories will enable technologies including long distance quantum communication and modular quantum computing. Rare earth ion doped crystals provide an excellent solid state platform for optical quantum memories. Among rare earths, erbium is particularly appealing due to its long-lived telecom-wavelength resonance, allowing integration with silicon photonics and with existing optical communication technology and infrastructure. We present an on-chip all-optical quantum memory at telecom wavelengths using a nanobeam photonic crystal cavity fabricated directly in erbium-167 doped yttrium orthosilicate. Using an atomic frequency comb protocol, we store coherent pulses for memory times as long as 10 µs, albeit with low efficiency. For shorter memory times, we achieve a memory efficiency of 0.4%, which is limited by the coupling rate between the resonator and the ensemble of ions. By working at dilution refrigerator temperatures, we are able to access a regime where the ions have long optical coherence times and good spectral holeburning properties using only a moderate magnetic field applied with permanent magnets. We characterize the multimode properties and fidelity of the quantum memory in this device, and outline a path toward higher efficiency.
Quantum memories at telecom wavelengths are crucial for the construction of large-scale quantum networks based on existing fiber networks. On-demand storage of telecom photonic qubits is an essential request for such networking applications but yet to be demonstrated. Here we demonstrate the storage and on-demand retrieval of telecom photonic qubits using a laser-written waveguide fabricated in an ^{167}Er^{3+}:Y_{2}SiO_{5} crystal. Both ends of the waveguide memory are directly connected with fiber arrays with a fiber-to-fiber efficiency of 51%. Storage fidelity of 98.3(1)% can be obtained for time-bin qubits encoded with single-photon-level coherent pulses, which is far beyond the maximal fidelity that can be achieved with a classical measure and prepared strategy. This device features high reliability and easy scalability, and it can be directly integrated into fiber networks, which could play an essential role in fiber-based quantum networks.