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Applied Physics Letters

Ghost diffraction–interference fringes of bosons via ghost imaging

Yoshiki O-oka, Hiroka Otomo, Ryota Keyaki, S. Fukatsu

Published Feb 23, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The time domain is a one-dimensional space, and hence the diffraction–interference in three dimensions is absent. However, ghost diffraction–interference (GD) building on a two-particle-enabled Young's experiment is still relevant. This is because fixed-timing detection can emulate pinhole detection at the core of GD. Here is demonstrated a different class of GD free of pinhole detection in the time domain. The bucket detection in ghost imaging enables it, which is best paraphrased as “ghost diffraction–interference via ghost imaging.”

DOI
10.1063/5.0312208

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The time domain is a one-dimensional space, and hence the diffraction–interference in three dimensions is absent. However, ghost diffraction–interference (GD) building on a two-particle-enabled Young's experiment is still relevant. This is because fixed-timing detection can emulate pinhole detection at the core of GD. Here is demonstrated a different class of GD free of pinhole detection in the time domain. The bucket detection in ghost imaging enables it, which is best paraphrased as “ghost diffraction–interference via ghost imaging.”
Temporal ghost diffraction (TGD) is observed by taking two-photon cross-correlation in the configuration of reciprocal two-slit diffraction where interference fringes develop on the light source side as opposed to the detector side. To this end, a narrow-band chaotic light source and a gated detector are used in the frequency-time domain, which emulate a randomly pointing incoherent light source and a stationary pinhole detector in the momentum-space domain, respectively. Spectral fringes with a signed visibility that closely follows a sinc function of the spectral bandwidth are clear evidence that legitimate TGD fringes due to two-photon interference have developed. This compares with the previous attempt [M. Bellini et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 043602 (2003)] that is essentially ``ghost imaging of spectral fringes'' to be distinguished from TGD, which implies that the putative GD reports in the literature might demand a revision in terms of their physical insights.
Temporal ghost diffraction (TGD) is observed by taking two-photon cross-correlation in the configuration of reciprocal two-slit diffraction (2SD) where interference fringes develop on the light source side as opposed to the detector side. To this end, a narrow-band chaotic light source and a gated detector are used in the frequency-time domain, which emulate a randomly pointing incoherent light source and a stationary pinhole detector in the momentum-space domain, respectively. Spectral fringes with visibility that closely follows a sinc function of spectral bandwidth are clear evidence that legitimate TGD fringes due to two-photon interference develop even with classical light.
Ghost imaging and ghost diffraction can be realized by using the spatial correlations between signal and idler photons produced by spontaneous parametric down-conversion. If an object is placed in the signal (idler) path, the spatial correlations between the transmitted photons as measured by a single, non-imaging, "bucket" detector and a scanning detector placed in the idler (signal) path can reveal either the image or diffraction pattern of the object, whereas neither detector signal on its own can. The details of the bucket detector, such as its collection area and numerical aperture, set the number of transverse modes supported by the system. For ghost imaging these details are less important, affecting mostly the sampling time required to produce the image. For ghost diffraction, however, the bucket detector must be filtered to a single, spatially coherent mode. We examine this difference in behavour by using either a multi-mode or single-mode fibre to define the detection aperture. Furthermore, instead of a scanning detector we use a heralded camera so that the image or diffraction pattern produced can be measured across the full field of view. The importance of a single mode detection in the observation of ghost diffraction is equivalent to the need within a classical diffraction experiment to illuminate the aperture with a spatially coherent mode.
Although questions regarding fundamental issues of quantum theory still exist, quantum entanglement has started to play important roles in practical engineering applications. Quantum imaging is one of these exciting areas. Quantum imaging has so far demonstrated three peculiar features: enhancing the spatial resolution of imaging beyond the diffraction limit; reproducing ghost images in a “nonlocal” manner; and dispersion-cancelation or turbulence-free imaging. The enhanced spatial resolution apparently “violates” the uncertainty principle. The ghost imaging is considered as a “nonlocal” phenomenon due to a point-to-point correlation of two interaction-free photons at distance. All the peculiar features are the results of two-photon interference, which involves the superposition of two-photon amplitudes, a nonclassical entity corresponding to different yet indistinguishable alternative ways of creating a joint-detection event. The effect of turbulence on a classic image can be easily seen from the blurring of the images.
A double-slit ghost interference experiment performed on an entangled resource using type-II non-collinear degenerate spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) is demonstrated.The influence of the distance between the double-slit and the bucket detector preceded by a pinhole is studied.The experimental results show that the interference fringes become increasingly distinct with higher visibility when the pinhole-double-slit distance increases.A first-order classical theory based on the Klyshko's two-photon advanced-wave picture, and a second-order quantum-image theory are provided for explanations.The fitting results indicate that the divergence of the converted fluorescence significantly affects the ghost fringes.
An attempt is made to implement acoustic ghost diffraction in the space-momentum domain using ultrasound. The Hanbury Brown—Twiss effect helps ghost diffraction—interference fringes hidden in a large backdrop of first-order fringes to materialize only after making the two emitters mutually incoherent in a post-selective manner, which is leveraged by programmed decoherence. Cross correlation of phononic coherent states is taken in a reciprocal two-slit diffraction geometry so that nontrivial fringes due to virtual one-phonon diffraction—interference fringes emulated by two phonons emerge on the side of the transmitter as opposed to the receiver.