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Quantum imaging with undetected photons of non-transmissive target

Chiara Michelini, Ugo Zanforlin, Alessia Suprano, Francesco Poggiali, Massimiliano Proietti, Lorenzo Pavesi, Massimiliano Dispenza

Published Apr 16, 2025• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) is an active imaging method in which the detected and the probing photons are distinct and can be selected from different spectral regions. This technique holds potential for a wide range of applications affected by the trade-off between illumination wavelength and detection efficiency. The state-of-the-art experimental configurations assess the spectral absorption and phase information of a target solely in a transmissive configuration, which presents a limitation for applications where the target cannot be aligned with optical elements positioned behind it. In this work, we present an experimental configuration for QIUP of a scattering target, aiming to fill the gap in the applicability of the QIUP technique and enabling QIUP to detect remote targets.

DOI
10.1117/12.3054175

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•Apr 20, 2026•0 citations
Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) is an active imaging method in which the detected and the probing photons are distinct and can be selected from different spectral regions. This technique holds potential for a wide range of applications affected by the trade-off between illumination wavelength and detection efficiency. The state-of-the-art experimental configurations assess the spectral absorption and phase information of a target solely in a transmissive configuration, which presents a limitation for applications where the target cannot be aligned with optical elements positioned behind it. In this work, we present an experimental configuration for QIUP of a scattering target, aiming to fill the gap in the applicability of the QIUP technique and enabling QIUP to detect remote targets.
Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) has recently emerged as a new powerful imaging tool. Exploiting the spatial entanglement of photon pairs, it allows decoupling of the sensing and detection wavelengths, facilitating imaging in otherwise challenging spectral regions by leveraging mature silicon-based detection technology. All existing implementations of QIUP have so far utilised the momentum correlations within the biphoton states produced by spontaneous parametric downconversion. Here, for the first time, we implement and examine theoretically and numerically the complementary scenario - utilising the tight position correlations formed within photon pairs at birth. This image plane arrangement facilitates high resolution imaging with comparative experimental ease, and we experimentally show resolutions below 10 μm at a sensing wavelength of 3.7 μm. Moreover, we present a quantitative numerical model predicting the imaging capabilities of QIUP for a wide range of parameters. Finally, by imaging mouse heart tissue at the mid-IR to reveal morphological features on the cellular level, we further demonstrate the viability of this technique for the life sciences. These results offer new perspectives on the capabilities of QIUP for label-free widefield mid-IR microscopy, enabling real-world biomedical as well as industrial imaging applications.
Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) is a unique method of image acquisition where the photons illuminating the object are not detected. This method relies on quantum interference and spatial correlations between the twin photons to form an image. Here we present a detailed study of the resolution limits of position correlation enabled QIUP. We establish a quantitative relation between the spatial resolution and the twin-photon position correlation. Furthermore, we also quantitatively establish the roles that the wavelength of the undetected illumination field and the wavelength of the detected field play in the resolution. Like ghost imaging and unlike conventional imaging, the resolution limit imposed by the spatial correlation between the twin photons in QIUP cannot be further improved by conventional optical techniques.
Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) allows an object to be probed at mid-infrared frequencies by only measuring interference in the visible range, thus leveraging silicon camera technology. We show that non-collinear phase-matching in a silver thiogallate (AgGaS2_22​) crystal enables wide-field QIUP in the wavelength range of 6-10 μμμm (1670-1000 cm−1^{-1}−1). A combination of coherent detection and infrared photons being ``undetected'' enables imaging at ${\sim}$100 times better than the background-limited infrared photodetection (BLIP) limit. At 8 μμμm, our images have over 8000 ±\pm± 100 resolvable elements with a 297 ±\pm± 5 μμμm resolution, and 10 s acquisition time. Our results pave the way to fast, background-noise-free, room-temperature, spectrally-selective mid-infrared imaging.
Quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) is a unique imaging technique that does not require the detection of the light used for illuminating the object. This technique requires a correlated pair of photons. In the existing implementations of QIUP, the imaging is enabled by the momentum correlation between the twin photons. We investigate the complementary scenario in which the imaging is instead enabled by the position correlation between the two photons. We present a general theory and show that the properties of the images obtained in these two cases are significantly distinct.
We present principles of quantum imaging with undetected photons (QIUP) and show modifications we made to the nonlinear interferometer for QUIP in order to use off-axes holography for faster image reconstruction. We present images made by off-axes quantum holography (OAQH) and discuss image capabilities of the system. In this work we use a pair of quantum correlated photons, generated by spontaneous parametric down-conversion in a non-linear crystal; one photon form a pair interacts with object, and another is detected. In our system both photons are in near infra-red, but by slight modifications they will be in different spectral regions, interacting photons in mid infra-red, detected photons in visible or near infra-ed. This opens very useful applications of QIUP for imaging and sensing in MIR.
Quantum interference with undetected photons has gained significant attention in the past ten years due to its potential to decouple the probing and the detection of an active sensing system. The technique is based on correlated photon pairs: one photon interacts with the analyte, and the signature of the interaction is stored in its correlated counterpart. The probing photon remains undetected, while the other photon is measured. When the photons are highly non-degenerate, the spectral separation of the probing and detected photons offers significant advantages in terms of ease of operation and enhanced sensitivity, enabling more precise measurements and analysis with respect to other sensing techniques. This possibility enables a wide range of applications, particularly in fields such as imaging, spectroscopy, and optical coherence tomography, among others. This thesis describes experiments for imaging and sensing based on undetected photons, both in a free-space optical setup and in an integrated photonic circuit. The free-space configuration was used to perform undetected three-dimensional imaging reconstruction of diffusive targets. This validation of imaging with undetected photons paves the way to further development to in vivo biomedical imaging, covert imaging, and remote sensing. On the other hand, the integrated configuration overcomes the limitation of alignment tolerance and scalability of a free-space optical setup, enabling the development of integrated sensors based on undetected photons.