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New Journal of Physics

Directly measured squeeze factors over GHz bandwidth from monolithic PPKTP resonators

Benedict Tohermes, Sophie Verclas, J. N. Hohmann, Dieter Haupt, Roman Schnabel

Published Sep 1, 2025• 4 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract Squeezed vacuum states of light with bandwidths in the gigahertz range are required for ultrafast quantum sensors, for high-speed continuous-variable (CV) one-sided device independent QKD and for CV optical quantum computers. Here we report on the detailed investigation of the current performance limits of the established method for the generation and direct measurement of squeezed light with GHz bandwidth. We present squeeze factors of diffraction limited laser beams from monolithic periodically poled KTP resonators measured with two laboratory-built balanced homodyne detectors (BHDs) with gigahertz bandwidth. We realize two complete systems without selection of optical or electronic hardware components to test the reproducibility without rejects. As expected, the systems show clear spectral differences. However, both achieve directly measured squeeze factors in the order of 3 dB over a GHz bandwidth, which is achieved here for the first time. Since the speed of CV quantum protocols scales proportionally to the bandwidth used, our layout for BHDs is suitable for increasing the speed of all these protocols.

DOI
10.1088/1367-2630/ae0512

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The squeezed light at 1.5 m telecommunication band has been considered as an important resource of continuous variable (CV) practical fiber-based quantum information research because it is the lowest loss in fiber. A bright phase quadrature squeezed light for continuous variable at 1.5 m is demonstrated from a semi-monolithic degenerate optical parametric amplifier (DOPA) based on a periodically poled KTiOPO4 (PPKTP) crystal. The laser source is a continuous wave (CW) single-frequency fiber laser at 1.5 m, which is sent through a ring mode cleaner (MC) as a preliminary spatial and noise filter. And then the main portion of the output from the MC is used for external-enhanced second harmonic generation to obtain a CW single-frequency low noise laser at 780 nm that acts as the pump of the DOPA. The residual light of the output from the MC at 1.5 m is used as the injected signal light of the DOPA and the local oscillator (LO) of a balanced homodyne detector (BHD) system. The DOPA is built by using a type-I PPKTP crystal and a piezo-actuated output coupler and works in double-resonance case with a threshold power of 230 mW. When the DOPA is operating in the state of amplification, the output down-conversion field should be a bright phase quadrature squeezed light, where the relative phase between the pump and the injected signal is locked to 0. A 4.7 dB bright phase quadrature squeezed light is measured by the BHD system with the pump light of 110 mW and the injected signal of 3 mW, where the relative phase between the down-conversion field and the LO is locked to 0. Our measurement is limited by the optical losses and the detection efficiency. We have taken into account the detection efficiency of 86.6%, and the actual squeezing of the squeezed light being 6.3 dB. Moreover, because it is so crucial a process for CV quantum information system that the transmission and evolution of the CV squeezed states in the fiber may reappear in all information of the quantum states in the phase space, then the bright squeezed light is detected by a BHD system in the time domain, and its Wigner quasi-probability distribution function can be reconstructed by using a quantum tomographic technique. Furthermore, the bright squeezed state at 1.5 m is an ideal source for fiber-based long-distance quantum information because of its stability and bright mean field.

Acta Physica Sinica•Jan 1, 2016•4 citations
Abstract Squeezed vacuum states of light with bandwidths in the gigahertz range are required for ultrafast quantum sensors, for high-speed continuous-variable (CV) one-sided device independent QKD and for CV optical quantum computers. Here we report on the detailed investigation of the current performance limits of the established method for the generation and direct measurement of squeezed light with GHz bandwidth. We present squeeze factors of diffraction limited laser beams from monolithic periodically poled KTP resonators measured with two laboratory-built balanced homodyne detectors (BHDs) with gigahertz bandwidth. We realize two complete systems without selection of optical or electronic hardware components to test the reproducibility without rejects. As expected, the systems show clear spectral differences. However, both achieve directly measured squeeze factors in the order of 3 dB over a GHz bandwidth, which is achieved here for the first time. Since the speed of CV quantum protocols scales proportionally to the bandwidth used, our layout for BHDs is suitable for increasing the speed of all these protocols.
Squeezed vacuum states of light with bandwidths in the gigahertz range are required for ultrafast quantum sensors, for high-bandwidth QKD and for optical quantum computers. Here we present squeeze factors of monolithic periodically poled KTP (ppKTP) resonators measured with two laboratory-built balanced homodyne detectors with gigahertz bandwidth. We realise two complete systems without selection of optical or electronic hardware components to test the reproducibility without rejects. As expected, the systems show clear spectral differences. However, both achieve directly measured squeeze factors in the order of 3 dB over a GHz bandwidth, which is achieved here for the first time. Our direct measurement of quantum correlation is suitable for increasing the key rate of one-sided, device-independent QKD.
We report the generation of squeezed vacuum states of light at 1550 nm with a broadband quantum noise reduction of up to 4.8 dB ranging from 5 MHz to 1.2 GHz sideband frequency. We used a custom-designed 2.6 mm long biconvex periodically-poled potassium titanyl phosphate (PPKTP) crystal. It featured reflectively coated end surfaces, 2.26 GHz of linewidth and generated the squeezing via optical parametric amplification. Two homodyne detectors with different quantum efficiencies and bandwidths were used to characterize the non-classical noise suppression. We measured squeezing values of up to 4.8 dB from 5 to 100 MHz and up to 3 dB from 100 MHz to 1.2 GHz. The squeezed vacuum measurements were limited by detection loss. We propose an improved detection scheme to measure up to 10 dB squeezing over 1 GHz. Our results of GHz bandwidth squeezed light generation provide new prospects for high-speed quantum key distribution.
We report the generation of squeezed vacuum states of light at 1550 nm with a broadband quantum noise reduction of up to 4.8 dB ranging from 5 MHz to 1.2 GHz sideband frequency. We used a custom-designed 2.6 mm long biconvex periodically-poled potassium titanyl phosphate (PPKTP) crystal. It featured reflectively coated end surfaces, 2.26 GHz of linewidth and generated the squeezing via optical parametric amplification. Two homodyne detectors with different quantum efficiencies and bandwidths were used to characterize the non-classical noise suppression. We measured squeezing values of up to 4.8 dB from 5 to 100 MHz and up to 3 dB from 100 MHz to 1.2 GHz. The squeezed vacuum measurements were limited by detection loss. We propose an improved detection scheme to measure up to 10 dB squeezing over 1 GHz. Our results of GHz bandwidth squeezed light generation provide new prospects for high-speed quantum key distribution.
Squeezed states can be employed for entanglement-based continuous-variable quantum key distribution, where the secure key rate is proportional to the bandwidth of the squeezing. We produced a nonclassical cw laser field at the telecommunication wavelength of 1550 nm, which showed squeezing over a bandwidth of more than 2 GHz. The experimental setup used parametric downconversion via a periodically poled potassium titanyl phosphate crystal. We did not use any resonant enhancement for the fundamental wavelength, which should in principle allow a production of squeezed light over the full phase-matching bandwidth of several nanometers. We measured the squeezing to be up to 0.3 dB below the vacuum noise from 50 MHz to 2 GHz limited by the measuring bandwidth of the homodyne detector. The squeezing strength was possibly limited by thermal lensing inside the nonlinear crystal.
One-sided device-independent Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) targets a mathematically proven secure communication between two parties without the need to trust the devices on one side. An appealing kind of high-speed implementation uses GHz-bandwidth two-mode squeezed states, distributed via an optical fiber link. The remote measurements, however, require the precise control of the phase with respect to an optical homodyne local oscillator. Here, we report what is believed to be the first transmission of single-mode squeezed vacuum states with GHz bandwidth over a 1 km optical fiber into a neighboring building combined with phase-stabilized measurements. We directly measure a squeeze factor of up to 4 dB. Our result is an important step towards high-speed QKD with enhanced security level for km-scale areas, e.g., government districts.
The squeezed light at 1.5 m telecommunication band has been considered as an important resource of continuous variable (CV) practical fiber-based quantum information research because it is the lowest loss in fiber. A bright phase quadrature squeezed light for continuous variable at 1.5 m is demonstrated from a semi-monolithic degenerate optical parametric amplifier (DOPA) based on a periodically poled KTiOPO4 (PPKTP) crystal. The laser source is a continuous wave (CW) single-frequency fiber laser at 1.5 m, which is sent through a ring mode cleaner (MC) as a preliminary spatial and noise filter. And then the main portion of the output from the MC is used for external-enhanced second harmonic generation to obtain a CW single-frequency low noise laser at 780 nm that acts as the pump of the DOPA. The residual light of the output from the MC at 1.5 m is used as the injected signal light of the DOPA and the local oscillator (LO) of a balanced homodyne detector (BHD) system. The DOPA is built by using a type-I PPKTP crystal and a piezo-actuated output coupler and works in double-resonance case with a threshold power of 230 mW. When the DOPA is operating in the state of amplification, the output down-conversion field should be a bright phase quadrature squeezed light, where the relative phase between the pump and the injected signal is locked to 0. A 4.7 dB bright phase quadrature squeezed light is measured by the BHD system with the pump light of 110 mW and the injected signal of 3 mW, where the relative phase between the down-conversion field and the LO is locked to 0. Our measurement is limited by the optical losses and the detection efficiency. We have taken into account the detection efficiency of 86.6%, and the actual squeezing of the squeezed light being 6.3 dB. Moreover, because it is so crucial a process for CV quantum information system that the transmission and evolution of the CV squeezed states in the fiber may reappear in all information of the quantum states in the phase space, then the bright squeezed light is detected by a BHD system in the time domain, and its Wigner quasi-probability distribution function can be reconstructed by using a quantum tomographic technique. Furthermore, the bright squeezed state at 1.5 m is an ideal source for fiber-based long-distance quantum information because of its stability and bright mean field.