IEEE Dallas Circuits and Systems Conference (DCAS)
Progress on the Multidimensional Distribution of Spatially-Entangled Photons Over Multicore Fibers
Amin Azaridoodaran, Mohammad Awwad, Cheng Guo, M. Vasilyev
Abstract
Spatial-division multiplexing is a key technology for increasing the capacity of classical optical fiber networks. It also provides additional degrees of freedom for photon entanglement and transmission in quantum communication networks. This paper describes steps toward generating a four-dimensional, spatially-entangled state and its distribution over multi-km-long four-core fibers. We generate four mutually coherent beams using a spatial light modulator and investigate their simultaneous coupling into a four-core fiber. We verify the stability of both the relative phase and polarization between the cores over$\mathbf{1 0 ~ k m}$of a four-core fiber. We also characterize the polarization mode dispersion of the fiber and find its principal states of polarization to mitigate the effects of random polarization-dependent delay across the fiber cores.