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Journal of the Optical Society of America B

Nonlinear phase estimation via nonlinear-linear hybrid interferometers

Jiandong Zhang, Chuang Li, Shuai Wang

Published Mar 21, 2022• 5 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Estimating nonlinear phase shifts is useful to analyze many dynamical processes. In this work, with respect to the second-order nonlinear phase shifts, we propose an estimation scheme with a coherent state as the input and balanced homodyne detection as the readout strategy. The measurement setup is a nonlinear-linear hybrid interferometer composed of an optical parametric amplifier and a beam splitter. We analyze the precision and determine the optimal parameters of our scheme. The precision is compared with the quantum Cramér–Rao bound as well as the precision of a conventional nonlinear interferometer. In view of the fact that photon loss is ubiquitous, the effects of transmission loss and detection loss on the precision are addressed. At low gain, our scheme is superior to the scheme using a conventional nonlinear interferometer, and the precision can saturate the quantum Cramér–Rao bound.

DOI
10.1364/josab.452906

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Estimating nonlinear phase shifts is useful to analyze many dynamical processes. In this work, with respect to the second-order nonlinear phase shifts, we propose an estimation scheme with a coherent state as the input and balanced homodyne detection as the readout strategy. The measurement setup is a nonlinear-linear hybrid interferometer composed of an optical parametric amplifier and a beam splitter. We analyze the precision and determine the optimal parameters of our scheme. The precision is compared with the quantum Cramér–Rao bound as well as the precision of a conventional nonlinear interferometer. In view of the fact that photon loss is ubiquitous, the effects of transmission loss and detection loss on the precision are addressed. At low gain, our scheme is superior to the scheme using a conventional nonlinear interferometer, and the precision can saturate the quantum Cramér–Rao bound.
Abstract We have theoretically investigated the phase sensitivity of the hybrid interferometer with two coherent beams using the method of balance homodyne detection. The measurement device is a nonlinear–linear hybrid interferometer consisting of an optical parametric amplifier and a beam splitter. We prove that the phase sensitivity can beat the shot noise limit in the optimal conditions. Furthermore, we derive the quantum Cramér–Rao bound of the hybrid interferometer. The effects of transmission loss and detection loss on the measurement accuracy are discussed. The detection accuracy of this scheme is compared with that of the conventional SU (1,1) interferometer. Our results show that this scheme outperforms the conventional SU (1,1) interferometer scheme at high parametric strength. This scheme can be implemented with existing experimental techniques and will have important applications in quantum precision measurements.
We propose a high-precision phase estimation scheme in a hybrid interferometer by synergistically combining a Kerr nonlinear phase shifter and multi-photon subtraction operations. Using a coherent state and a vacuum state as input resources, we systematically evaluate the phase sensitivity via homodyne detection and analyze the quantum Fisher information as well as the quantum Cramér-Rao bound under both ideal and lossy conditions. Our results show that the joint integration of Kerr nonlinearity and multi-photon subtraction yields remarkable advantages over either technique used alone. The proposed scheme enables the phase sensitivity to surpass the standard quantum limit, exceed the conventional Heisenberg scaling (1/N1/N1/N), and approach the super-Heisenberg scaling (1/N21/N^{2}1/N2)-a direct consequence of Kerr nonlinearity. More precisely, the super-Heisenberg scaling $\propto $ 1/N21/N^{2}1/N2 is the ultimate precision limit permitted by the k=2k=2k=2 Kerr nonlinearity and does not violate the fundamental Heisenberg limit for linear phase accumulation. Even under moderate internal photon loss, the system maintains high precision and exhibits enhanced robustness to decoherence. The Kerr nonlinearity introduces an intensity-dependent phase shift proportional to the squared photon number, while multi-photon subtraction tailors non-Gaussian states to strengthen phase information extraction. Compared with existing schemes based on hybrid interferometers or SU(1,1) interferometers, our architecture achieves superior precision and stronger loss resilience. All components are experimentally accessible with current quantum optical technologies. This work provides a promising route for practical high-precision quantum metrology and quantum sensing.
Classical and quantum states working in concert play an essential role in high-precision interferometry. In this regard, coherent combined with squeezed vacuum states are the most promising candidate. Here we complement this subject by comparing nonlinear and nonlinear-linear hybrid interferometers with homodyne detection as a readout strategy. For a high-photon coherent state, either of the two interferometers can provide the phase sensitivity approaching the quantum Cramer-Rao bound. Additionally, we discuss the impacts of photon loss during the transmission and readout stages. We find that a nonlinear interferometer is advantageous over a nonlinear-linear hybrid interferometer. With increasing photon number of the coherent state, the maximal tolerable lossy rate ensuring phase sensitivity beyond the shot-noise limit is close to 50%. Our work may deepen the understanding of quantum-enhanced interferometry using nonlinear dynamics.
Quantum-enhanced phase estimation paves the way for precision measurements and is of great realistic significance. In this paper we theoretically investigate the second-order nonlinear phase estimation using a coherent state and parity measurement. A numerical expression of the parity signal is derived, and its visibility is analyzed. The resolution and sensitivity of the signal are compared to a linear phase estimation protocol with the same input and measurement. Additionally, by using the phase-averaging approach, we make an attempt at unveiling the lowdown on a conclusive sensitivity limit without external phase reference. Finally, the effects of several realistic scenarios on the resolution and sensitivity are studied, including photon loss, imperfect detector, those which are a combination thereof, and unbalanced beam splitter.
A nonlinear phase shift is introduced to a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI), and we present a scheme for enhancing the phase sensitivity. In our scheme, one input port of a standard MZI is injected with a coherent state and the other input port is injected with one mode of a two-mode squeezed-vacuum state. The final interference output of the MZI is detected with the method of active correlation output readout. Based on the optimal splitting ratio of beam splitters, the phase sensitivity can beat the standard quantum limit and approach the quantum Cram\'er-Rao bound. The effects of photon loss on phase sensitivity are discussed. Our scheme can also provide some estimates for units of ${\ensuremath{\chi}}^{(3)}$, due to the relation between the nonlinear phase shift and the susceptibility ${\ensuremath{\chi}}^{(3)}$ of the Kerr medium.
Abstract We investigate the enhancement of phase sensitivity of a nonlinear-linear hybrid interferometer with the input of the two-mode squeezed coherent state (TMSCS). With the TMSCS produced by four-wave mixing, the quantum Cramér-Rao bounds (QCRB) can beat the Heisenberg limit (HL). Under the phase matched conditions, the optimal phase sensitivity with the balanced homodyne detection measurement can beat the HL and approach QCRB. The effects of internal and external losses on the measurement accuracy are also discussed. The results demonstrate that the scheme is robustness against to internal losses and this protocol can resist external detection loss which is up to 39%. Our results improve the performance of hybrid interferometers and this scheme can find important practical applications in quantum metrology.