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Ultrafast Phenomena and Nanophotonics

Ultrafast detection of quantum emitters

Mario Agio, Amr Farrag, Haritha Kambalathmana, Abdul Fattah, Assegid M. Flatae

Published Mar 7, 2022• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We discuss theoretical and experimental results on the ultrafast detection of quantum emitters. We employ nano-antennas, specifically gold nanocones, to accelerate the spontaneous emission rate of silicon-vacancy color centers in diamond by orders of magnitude to generate single photons with picoseconds timescales. Moreover, we implement an optical Kerr shutter under tight focusing to be able to detect such ultrafast single photons with time resolutions down to a few hundreds of femtoseconds.

DOI
10.1117/12.2608088

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We discuss theoretical and experimental results on the ultrafast detection of quantum emitters. We employ nano-antennas, specifically gold nanocones, to accelerate the spontaneous emission rate of silicon-vacancy color centers in diamond by orders of magnitude to generate single photons with picoseconds timescales. Moreover, we implement an optical Kerr shutter under tight focusing to be able to detect such ultrafast single photons with time resolutions down to a few hundreds of femtoseconds.
The ultrafast detection of single photons is currently restricted by the limited time resolution (a few picoseconds) of the available single-photon detectors. Optical gates offer a faster time resolution, but so far they have been applied mostly to ensembles of emitters. Here, we demonstrate through a semi-analytical model that the ultrafast time-resolved detection of single quantum emitters can be possible using an optical Kerr shutter at gigahertz rates under focused illumination. This technique provides sub-picosecond time resolution, while keeping a gate efficiency at around 85%. These findings lay the ground for future experimental investigations on the ultrafast dynamics of single quantum emitters, with implications for quantum nanophotonics and molecular physics.
Silicon-vacancy (SiV) color centers in diamond offer novel possibilities to probe light-matter interaction in nano-quantum optics and provide a scalable quantum system suitable for single-photon emission. However, their effective count-rate is still limited by non-radiative decay channels, radiation at wide angles and total internal reflection at the diamond interface. Recently optical antennas have been utilized in order to modify light-matter interaction at the nanoscale. Acting as resonators, they are able to increase the spontaneous emission rate of quantum emitters by several orders of magnitude in a broad spectral range. Because coupling a quantum emitter to a nano-antenna requires close proximity between the two systems, we implant Si ions on very thin diamond membranes that provide the required dimension for near-field interaction in a controlled manner and investigate the optical properties of SiV color centers in such diamond membranes. We consider gold nano-cones as nano-antennas, fabricated by focused electron beam induced deposition (EBID), followed by sputtering and focused ion beam (FIB) milling. The finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) calculations show that gold nano-cones can provide more than four orders of magnitude enhancement in the Purcell factor with an antenna efficiency (AE) of 80%.
We review recent advances towards the realization of quantum networks based on atom-like solid-state quantum emitters coupled to nanophotonic devices. Specifically, we focus on experiments involving the negatively charged silicon-vacancy color center in diamond. These emitters combine homogeneous, coherent optical transitions and a long-lived electronic spin quantum memory. We discuss optical and spin properties of this system at cryogenic temperatures and describe experiments where silicon-vacancy centers are coupled to nanophotonic devices. Finally, we discuss experiments demonstrating quantum nonlinearities at the single-photon level and two-emitter entanglement in a single nanophotonic device.
Chapter 1 reviews recent advances towards the realization of quantum networks based on atom-like solid-state quantum emitters coupled to nanophotonic devices. Specifically, focus is on experiments involving the negatively charged silicon-vacancy color center in diamond. These emitters combine homogeneous, coherent optical transitions and a long-lived electronic spin quantum memory. Optical and spin properties of this system at cryogenic temperatures and experiments where silicon-vacancy centers are coupled to nanophotonic cavities are discussed. Finally, the chapter discusses experiments demonstrating quantum nonlinearities at the single-photon level and two-emitter entanglement in a single nanophotonic device.
Quantum communication and quantum metrology established a demand for an accessible solid state systems which can generate a stream of single photons on demand [1]. Although single photon emission has been demonstrated from quantum dots (QD)[1,2], single molecules [3] and nanowires [4], their practical operation is limited by the temperature or photostability. Diamond crystals, however, are the most promising platform for generation of robust, photo-stable, single photons at room temperature [5,6]. Nevertheless, out of more than 500 existing optical centers in diamond only three known centers demonstrated a clear single photon emission: the nitrogen-vacancy complex [6,7], the silicon-vacancy complex [8] and the nickel-nitrogen complex [9,10]. Recent progress in materials science and fabrication techniques of diamond color centers unveiled novel quantum emitters with photo-physical properties surpassing the current mainstream [11,12,13]. Consequently, the versatility of the diamond lattice to host various impurities which give luminescence signals lead to a dramatic discovery of ultra bright single photon emitters operating in the MHz regime [14]. These new centers, comparable with QD in terms of brightness [1], but have the tremendous advantage of their room temperature operation and photo-stability. Furthermore, it opened a new avenue to investigate essentially an unknown group of single photon emitters. A brief description of the fabrication methods and a detailed quantum optical characterization of this class of diamond emitters is the subject of this presentation. In particular we will present the photo-physical properties of a novel family of single photon emitters, most likely originated from Cr impurities within the chemical vapor deposition grown nano-diamond crystals. We concentrate on the typical emission lines in the range of 740 - 790 nm, which exhibit single photon emission with count rate in the range of 0.8-3.2 106 counts/s at the limit of infinite optical excitation power, and life time as short as 1 ns. Even more, some of the emitters exhibit a photon statistics without any photon bunching, indicating a two-level system with unitary quantum efficiency. We will also show preliminary results of a resonant excitation at 4 K. We will highlight future directions to optimize these sources and avenues to investigate the fundamental properties of these centers.
The generation and efficient detection of ultrafast single photons is at the forefront of modern optical science, and it offers an unprecedented set of capabilities, for instance, in the area of quantum information science, high-sensitivity detection, and remote sensing [1] - [3] . In addition, it provides a powerful analysis tool in the life sciences at the single-molecule level [4] . The detection of single photons is currently restricted by the limited time resolution (a few picoseconds) of the available single-photon detectors.