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Photonics for Quantum (PfQ)

Quantum interference of identical photons from remote GaAs quantum dots

Alisa Javadi, Giang N. Nguyen, Liang Zhai, Clemens Spinnler, Julian Ritzmann, Matthias C. Löbl, Andreas Dirk Wieck, Arne Ludwig, Richard John Warburton

Published Jul 19, 2023• 0 citations

Abstract

Efficient generation and detection of coherent single photons are key to advances in photonic quantum technologies such as quantum computation, quantum simulation, and quantum communication. Among many quantum emitters, semiconductor quantum dots are promising due to their deterministic and high-rate single-photon emission and the possibility of integration into nanostructures. However, poor quantum coherence between single photons created by independent emitters poses a major roadblock. Here, we present near-unity two-photon interference visibilities from two separate GaAs quantum dots. This high visibility (~93%) is achieved under rigorous conditions: there is no Purcell enhancement, no temporal post-selection, no narrow spectral filtering, nor frequency stabilization. One key component is the heterostructure, an n-i-p diode using material of excellent quality. The quantum dot charge is locked via Coulomb blockade; within a charging plateau, the exact emission frequency can be tuned via the bias applied to the gate; the charge noise is very low. A second key component is the quantum dot itself: the relatively large size confers multiple benefits. Our results suggest that GaAs quantum dots represent a versatile choice for generating identical photons from multiple emitters.

DOI: 10.1117/12.2671752

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We investigate the indistinguishability of single photons generated from strain-free GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots using pulsed resonance fluorescence techniques. In pulsed two-photon interference measurements we observe a single photon indistinguishability with a raw visibility of 95%. This can be traced back to the short intrinsic lifetime of excitons and trions confined in the GaAs quantum dots and demonstrates that for this material system the generation of single photons is possible with near-unity indistinguishability even without Purcell enhancement.

Photonic quantum technologies call for scalable quantum light sources that can be integrated, while providing the end user with single and entangled photons on demand. One promising candidate is strain free GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots obtained by aluminum droplet etching. Such quantum dots exhibit ultra low multi-photon probability and an unprecedented degree of photon pair entanglement. However, different to commonly studied InGaAs/GaAs quantum dots obtained by the Stranski-Krastanow mode, photons with a near-unity indistinguishability from these quantum emitters have proven to be elusive so far. Here, we show on-demand generation of near-unity indistinguishable photons from these quantum emitters by exploring pulsed resonance fluorescence. Given the short intrinsic lifetime of excitons and trions confined in the GaAs quantum dots, we show single photon indistinguishability with a raw visibility of [Formula: see text], without the need for Purcell enhancement. Our results represent a milestone in the advance of GaAs quantum dots by demonstrating the final missing property standing in the way of using these emitters as a key component in quantum communication applications, e.g., as quantum light sources for quantum repeater architectures.

Scalable optical quantum technologies require interference between large numbers of indistinguishable single-photons emitted by independent sources. Semiconductor quantum dots are known to be excellent on-demand sources of single-photons. They show record efficiency when inserted into optical cavities to control their spontaneous emission and generate trains of near identical photons over microsecond timescales. However, generating perfectly identical photons from distant cavity-based sources has remained a long-standing challenge. It requires precise matching of the emission wavelengths and emission dynamics, while simultaneously minimizing spectral noise across all time scales for distant emitters in uncorrelated environments. Here, we report on the nanofabrication of a large number of quantum dot-cavity sources with ultra-low spectral noise and wavelength dispersion. The high source efficiency and the use of two tuning mechanisms enable precise optimization of the spectral overlap between distant sources. With this approach, we demonstrate a two-photon indistinguishability of

88\pm1

% between photons emitted from two distant sources. Remarkably, this value reaches the upper bound set by the intrinsic indistinguishability of photons emitted successively by each source. These results represent a key milestone for scaling photon-based quantum technologies.

We investigate the indistinguishability of single photons generated from strain-free GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots using pulsed resonance fluorescence techniques. In pulsed two-photon interference measurements we observe a single photon indistinguishability with a raw visibility of 95%. This can be traced back to the short intrinsic lifetime of excitons and trions confined in the GaAs quantum dots and demonstrates that for this material system the generation of single photons is possible with near-unity indistinguishability even without Purcell enhancement.