In this work we present a method of preparing and operating on photonic quantum states. It consists in coding quantum states in parallel Gaussian beams, which are transformed by diffraction gratings. We show through experimental results that this technique is able to operate in high-dimentional systems (D > 2) and perform sequential operations, among other advantages. We also show that, using the phenomenon of parametric down conversion, we are able to prepare two systems encoded in parallel Gaussian beams entangled with each other. Finally, we show that we can add one extra degree of freedom, the polarization, to create hyper-entangled states, i. e., entangled in more than one degree of freedom, and states that have hybrid entanglement, i. e., which present entanglement between different degrees of freedom.
In this work we present a method of preparing and operating on photonic quantum states. It consists in coding quantum states in parallel Gaussian beams, which are transformed by diffraction gratings. We show through experimental results that this technique is able to operate in high-dimentional systems (D > 2) and perform sequential operations, among other advantages. We also show that, using the phenomenon of parametric down conversion, we are able to prepare two systems encoded in parallel Gaussian beams entangled with each other. Finally, we show that we can add one extra degree of freedom, the polarization, to create hyper-entangled states, i. e., entangled in more than one degree of freedom, and states that have hybrid entanglement, i. e., which present entanglement between different degrees of freedom.
We show that the quantum disentanglement eraser implemented on a two-photon system from parametric downconversion is a general method to create hybrid photonic entanglement, namely the entanglement between different degrees of freedom of the photon pair. To demonstrate this, we generate and characterize a source with tunable degree of hybrid entanglement between two qubits, one encoded in the transverse momentum and position of a photon, and the other in the polarization of its partner. In addition, we show that a simple extension of our setup enables the generation of two-photon qubit-qudit hybrid entangled states. Finally, we discuss the advantages that this type of entanglement can bring for an optical quantum network.
In this thesis, we explore the properties of photons generated by parametric down-conversion (PDC) and entangled in continuous variables of transverse momentum, with the aim of using this degree of freedom for developing a new method for generating en-tangled states in discrete and multidimensional spaces. Such states have a great potential for applications in fundamental problems of quantum mechanics as well as in quantum information protocols. Our study is based on the theory of angular spectrum transfer from the laser beam tothe two-photon state, proposed and demonstrated by Monken, Souto Ribeiro and P Ladua [Phys. Rev. A 57, 3123 (1998)]. Using it, we investigate theoretically the evolution of the quantum state of photon pairs when they propagate from the crystal and are transmitted through linear optical systems like lenses and apertures. The two-photon state is calculated when there is only one optical system in the path of each photon and we also discuss the generalization of the method employed in the calculation, for more complex experiments. With the two-photon state obtained, we propose a method for generating entangledstates of qubits (two-dimensional quantum systems) and qudits (D-dimensional quantum systems), using the transverse momentum of photons from PDC. The method is based on the selection of specific transverse spatial modes of each photon, by using an array of D-slits (D . 2) in the path of these photons. In this method we have the control of the dimension, D, of each qudit and also the degree of entanglement between them, by manipulating the transverse laser beam profile, which is due to the transfer of angular spectrum. In order to test the theory, we make an experiment for a specific case, which has a great interest in practical applications of entanglement: we demonstrate the generation of maximally entangled states of qudits with D = 4 and D = 8. The quantum character of the correlations is assured qualitatively by measuring two-photon interference patterns with conditional fringes. We also investigate the propagation of these entangled states of qudits through free space and with a simple experiment we show that they can be distributed for distant and spatially separated parts, keeping the correlations. Finally, we perform an experiment for quantifying entanglement in this type of state that we are producing. In this work, we restrict ourselves to the simplest case of two qubits. We prepare different states by manipulating the transverse laser beam profile and their degree of entanglement is measured in two ways: (i) through the degree ofconditionality of the two-photon interference patterns and (ii) through the measurement of marginal probability. We discuss the extension of the method (i) for two-qudit states.
Summary form only given. Entanglement, a fundamental resource of quantum technologies, is a unique quantum mechanical attribute. In various systems it can be achieved in various individual degrees of freedom, however some of those systems are able to create entanglement in multiple degrees of freedom simultaneously: hyper-entanglement [1]. Here, we report on demonstration of polarization [2] and time-bin [3] hyper-entangled photons emitted from a single quantum dot. By applying two-photon resonant and coherent excitation on a quantum dot system with marginal fine structure splitting we yield fidelities to the maximally entangled state of 0.80(3) and 0.87(4) in polarization and time-bin, respectively. Quantum enhanced communication schemes rely on Bell-state measurements, which find their simplest realization in the interference of two photons at a beam splitter. However, this method is efficiency limited [4] and a complete Bell state analysis of a photon pair entangled in one degree of freedom using only linear optics is impossible. This limitation can be overcome if the photon pair is entangled in more than one degree of freedom, a hyper-entangled state. Using such states in such schemes does not only reduce the resource overhead [5] it also offers the possibility to increase the success rate significantly [6].
In recent decades, Parametric Down Conversion (PDC) has been the main method of production of entangled photonic quantum states, most often bipartite. Inaddition, the discretization (withinacertainrange) of transversal momentum of the photon pair generated by PDC is the main tool for producing entangled qudits. Such discretization, in conjunction with different methods of experimental manipulation of photon beamsproduced in PDC, constitutes the various methods of engineering of slit states, which are well established only to states with dimensionality of the kind n×n. Inthismasters thesis, a study is presented of each of those methods of production applied to states of the form 2×2. As the central point of the work, is also presented their extension to case 2×3, aiming the generalization to any dimensionality of the form NxM. These twoparty discrete quantum states with different dimensions in each party is called Hybrid Dimension Quantum State.
Entangled states are key ingredients to the new field of quantum information, including quantum dense coding, teleportation, and computation. However, only a relatively small class of entangled states has been investigated experimentally, or even discussed extensively. In particular, efforts to date have focused on two particles entangled in a single degree of freedom, for example polarization, or energy, or momentum direction. Novel phase-matching arrangements in spontaneous parametric down-conversion allow the preparation of pairs of photons that are simultaneously entangled in all of these. We shall call such a multiply-entangled state ‚hyper-entangled‘. In addition, an even more general state–-a non-maximally entangled state–-should be realizable, in which the amplitudes of the contributing terms are not equal.
Multi-particle entangled states are becoming more and more interesting for different applications in quantum information, such as quantum multi-particle teleportation, entangled based cryptography and quantum communication schemes based on multi-particle states, but also for fundamental reasons such as testing local realism by means of the Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger states (GHZ) arguments . The advantage of multiparticle entanglement versus the most common two particle one lies in the fact that the greater the number of particles involved in the entangled state, the more clearly the quantum effects are exhibited. Our final goal is to exploit the multi-photon entangled states for quantum metrology. By the interaction of those states with nanostructures (mostly nanoholes, but in a future also nanospheres), we expect to reach sub-wavelength sensitivity phase measurements beating the Standard Quantum Limit as well as to detect plasmonic effects. In this thesis we present our work consisting on designing and building an experimental setup for the generation of states of 4-photon entangled in the transverse linear momentum. In the first part we explain some basics in the form of a technical introduction. We then adapt a general theoretical model to our particular case, explaining the physics of the process of generation of entangled states of photons. We proceed explaining the details of our setup, as well as the procedure of measurement. We then present the results of our tests in a "standard" 2-photon regime to show the correct functioning of the setup itself. Some more sophisticated measurements using structured light in the form of a first-order Hermite-Gaussian mode has been performed to generate entanglement in higher spatial modes are also presented. We conclude with theoretical and experimental details regarding the 4-photon experiments feasible with our setup. Our source is based on Spontaneous Parametric Down-Conversion (SPDC). In the last two decades it has been extensively studied for the generation of two-photon entangled states, since Kwiat et al. published in 1995 the new scheme based on polarization entangled photons. Most of the studies regarding entangled states involving more than two photons are indeed based on quantum correlations in the polarization or in the path of the down converted beams. The great advantage of entangling a spatial degree of freedom (as we do) is related to the dimensionality of the Hilbert space in which the state is defined. In the particular case of linear momentum, which is a continuous variable, we are dealing with infinite dimensions. Since in each dimension of the state one quanta of information can be encoded, the advantage of having multidimension entanglement for the field of quantum communication and computing is clear. The specs of our setup include a periodically-poled KTP crystals offering high conversion efficiency and cut for type-0 SPDC. The photons generated are well known to be inherently entangled in different degrees of freedom such as polarization, energy-time, linear momentum, and orbital angular momentum. Since each single SPDC event generates one photon pair, in order to reach four photon we entangle two consecutive SPDC events per each state. Furthermore, it is possible to manipulate (to enhance) the dimensionality of the entanglement by properly tailoring the pump spatial profile. The key point for the generation of four-photon entangled states is that, under some conditions, two consecutive pairs generated via SPDC cannot be described as two independent pairs but necessarily as a four-photon state showing genuine entanglement. This can happen when using a pulsed laser to generate the entangled photons; in particular, in the regime in which the coherence time of the down-converted photons τc is (much) longer than the temporal length of the pumping pulse Δt. In this condition the emission of a second pair is stimulated by the presence of the first one. That effect can be ultimately seen as a constructive multi-particle interference effect, the deep origin of which has to be sought in the boson statistic of photons.