Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Bulletin of the Russian Academy of Sciences Physics

C-Band Fiber-Based Single-Photon Source with Continuous-Wave Laser Pumping

Maksim A. Smirnov, Mansur M. Minnegaliev

Published Jul 1, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The generation of single photons in the near-infrared range with a wavelength of 1533 nm is demonstrated. The generation is performed in an optical fiber using continuous-wave laser excitation and a heralding photon in the visible range with a wavelength of 520 nm. Despite relatively high pump powers and a significant contribution of noise photons, the presented source provides a high degree of single-photon generation purity ( $${\text{g}}_{{\text{c}}}^{{\left( 2 \right)}}\left( 0 \right) = 0.04)$$ . This work reveals the potential for creating compact fiber-optic sources of single infrared photons using continuous-wave laser sources.

DOI
10.1134/s1062873826700966

Related papers

Near-Infrared and Telecommunication-Wavelength Photon-Pair Source in Optical Fiber

Keshav Kapoor, Dong Beom Kim, Kriti Shetty +1 more

We present a photon-pair source in commercially available optical fiber that produces paired photons at telecommunication and near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths. The highly nondegenerate pairs are 700 nm apart: one in the 1500 nm E- and S-band telecommunication range and the other in the 830 nm NIR range. The high non-degeneracy means the photon pairs are far-detuned from Raman noise, resulting in a high coincidence-to-accidental ratio even while operating at room temperature. The source produces two spectrally and spatially distinct phase-matched processes with low spectral cross-talk, distinct transverse spatial modes in the NIR, and a single fundamental spatial mode in the telecommunication range. The source's room-temperature operation, off-the-shelf materials, and multiplexing potential make it promising for deployment in quantum networks.

quant-pharXiv:2602.15207•Feb 18, 2026•0 citations

Near-infrared and telecommunication-wavelength photon-pair source in optical fiber

Keshav Kapoor, Dong Beom Kim, Kriti Shetty +1 more

We present a photon-pair source in a commercially available optical fiber that produces paired photons at telecommunication and near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths. The highly nondegenerate pairs are 700 nm apart: one in the 1500 nm E- and S-band telecommunication range and the other in the 830 nm NIR range. The high nondegeneracy means the photon pairs are far-detuned from Raman noise, resulting in a high coincidence-to-accidental ratio even while operating at room temperature. The source produces two spectrally and spatially distinct phase-matched processes with low spectral cross-talk, distinct transverse spatial modes in the NIR, and a single fundamental spatial mode in the telecommunication range. The source’s room-temperature operation, off-the-shelf materials, and multiplexing potential make it promising for deployment in quantum networks.

Optics Express•Aug 7, 2026•0 citations

Visible–Telecom Photon Pair Source Based on a Photonic-Crystal Fiber under Continuous-Wave Pumping

A. F. Khairullin, A. M. Smirnova, Арсланов Наркис Мусавирович +4 more

The generation of interband photon pairs with wavelengths near 0.5 and 1.6 μm in a photonic-crystal fiber under low-power cw optical pumping by a diode laser with a central wavelength of 0.8 μm has been experimentally demonstrated. It has been found that the generation rate of entangled photons under cw pumping is comparable with values obtained with pulsed pumping by a femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser if the average cw pump power is an order of magnitude higher than the average pulsed pump power. The reached rates of photon generation are ensured by the used photonic-crystal fiber with a small effective mode area and a special dispersion profile. The reached low noise in the output signal is ensured by the separation of carrier frequencies of generated photons into different spectral bands.

Journal of Experimental and Theoretical Physics Letters•Mar 1, 2024•10 citations

A bright source of telecom single photons based on quantum frequency conversion

Christopher L. Morrison, Markus Rambach, Zhe Xian Koong +10 more

On-demand indistinguishable single-photon sources are essential for quantum networking and communication. Semiconductor quantum dots are among the most promising candidates, but their typical emission wavelength renders them unsuitable for use in fiber networks. Here, we present quantum frequency conversion of near-infrared photons from a bright quantum dot to the telecommunication C-band, allowing integration with existing fiber architectures. We use a custom-built, tunable 2400 nm seed laser to convert single photons from 942 nm to 1550 nm in a difference-frequency generation process. We achieve an end-to-end conversion efficiency of ≃35%, demonstrate count rates approaching 1 MHz at 1550 nm with g(2)(0)=0.043(1), and achieve Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) visibilities of 60%. We expect this scheme to be preferable to quantum dot sources directly emitting at telecom wavelengths for fiber-based quantum networking.

arXiv:2101.11640•Applied Physics Letters•Apr 26, 2021•40 citations

A silicon source of heralded single photons at 2 μm

Stefano Signorini, Matteo Sanna, Sara Piccione +4 more

Mid-infrared integrated quantum photonics is a promising platform for applications in sensing and metrology. However, there are only a few examples of on-chip single-photon sources at these wavelengths. These have limited performances with respect to their C-band counterparts. In this work, we demonstrate a new approach to generate heralded single photons in the mid-infrared on a silicon chip. By using a standard C-band pump, the inter-modal spontaneous four-wave mixing enables the generation of the herald idler at 1259.7 nm and the heralded signal at 2015 nm. The idler photon is easily detected with a common infrared single-photon detector while the signal photon is upconverted to visible before its detection. In this way, we are able to operate a mid-infrared source without the need for mid-infrared detectors and laser sources. By measuring a heralded g(2) of 0.23 ± 0.08, we demonstrate the single-photon behavior of the source as well as the feasibility of multi-photon coincidence measurements beyond 2 μm with our setup. The source exhibits a high-intrinsic heralding efficiency of (59 ± 5)%, a maximum coincidence to accidental ratio of 40.4 ± 0.9, and a generation probability of 0.70±0.10W−2.

arXiv:2108.01031•APL Photonics•Dec 1, 2021•21 citations

Spectrally-Pure Integrated Telecom-Band Photon Sources in Silicon

Shivani Sharma, Vivek Venkataraman, Joyee Ghosh

We demonstrate theoretically the direct (filter-free) generation of spectrally uncorrelated photon pairs, and consequently high-purity heralded single photons at telecommunication wavelengths, in SOI (silicon-on-insulator) nanowaveguides via spontaneous four-wave mixing (SFWM). The inherent strong waveguide dispersion in such high-index contrast structures is employed for discrete-band phase-matching in order to suppress the pair spectral correlations, and to produce photons in the fundamental spatial mode for easy in-out coupling to single-mode optical fibers. Additionally, by optimizing the source parameters like waveguide length, dispersion and pump bandwidth, the group-velocity of generated photons is also engineered to further eliminate spectral correlations. Extensive numerical mode simulations for various waveguide widths are used to design intrinsically pure photon sources via joint spectral amplitude (JSA) engineering. Purity$>$95% is shown to be achievable in a silica-clad SOI waveguide with a cross-section 220 × 600 nm$^{2}$for typical values of length and pump bandwidth. The wavelength of these heralded single photons can be tuned in the range of 1266–1363 nm ($\sim$O-band) by varying the pump wavelength. Considering the high accuracy provided by silicon nanofabrication techniques, the feasibility of generating single photons across the wavelength range 1333–1425 nm (E-band) and 1437–1510 nm (S-band) for slightly different waveguide widths (625 nm & 650 nm) is also demonstrated. These filter-free integrated photon sources could be important for large-scale linear optical quantum computation (LOQC) and long-distance fiber-optic quantum key distribution (QKD) networks.

Journal of Lightwave Technology•Jul 5, 2022•12 citations
The generation of single photons in the near-infrared range with a wavelength of 1533 nm is demonstrated. The generation is performed in an optical fiber using continuous-wave laser excitation and a heralding photon in the visible range with a wavelength of 520 nm. Despite relatively high pump powers and a significant contribution of noise photons, the presented source provides a high degree of single-photon generation purity ( gc(2)(0)=0.04){\text{g}}_{{\text{c}}}^{{\left( 2 \right)}}\left( 0 \right) = 0.04)gc(2)​(0)=0.04) . This work reveals the potential for creating compact fiber-optic sources of single infrared photons using continuous-wave laser sources.
We present a photon-pair source in commercially available optical fiber that produces paired photons at telecommunication and near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths. The highly nondegenerate pairs are 700 nm apart: one in the 1500 nm E- and S-band telecommunication range and the other in the 830 nm NIR range. The high non-degeneracy means the photon pairs are far-detuned from Raman noise, resulting in a high coincidence-to-accidental ratio even while operating at room temperature. The source produces two spectrally and spatially distinct phase-matched processes with low spectral cross-talk, distinct transverse spatial modes in the NIR, and a single fundamental spatial mode in the telecommunication range. The source's room-temperature operation, off-the-shelf materials, and multiplexing potential make it promising for deployment in quantum networks.
We present a photon-pair source in a commercially available optical fiber that produces paired photons at telecommunication and near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths. The highly nondegenerate pairs are 700 nm apart: one in the 1500 nm E- and S-band telecommunication range and the other in the 830 nm NIR range. The high nondegeneracy means the photon pairs are far-detuned from Raman noise, resulting in a high coincidence-to-accidental ratio even while operating at room temperature. The source produces two spectrally and spatially distinct phase-matched processes with low spectral cross-talk, distinct transverse spatial modes in the NIR, and a single fundamental spatial mode in the telecommunication range. The source’s room-temperature operation, off-the-shelf materials, and multiplexing potential make it promising for deployment in quantum networks.
The generation of interband photon pairs with wavelengths near 0.5 and 1.6 μm in a photonic-crystal fiber under low-power cw optical pumping by a diode laser with a central wavelength of 0.8 μm has been experimentally demonstrated. It has been found that the generation rate of entangled photons under cw pumping is comparable with values obtained with pulsed pumping by a femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser if the average cw pump power is an order of magnitude higher than the average pulsed pump power. The reached rates of photon generation are ensured by the used photonic-crystal fiber with a small effective mode area and a special dispersion profile. The reached low noise in the output signal is ensured by the separation of carrier frequencies of generated photons into different spectral bands.
On-demand indistinguishable single-photon sources are essential for quantum networking and communication. Semiconductor quantum dots are among the most promising candidates, but their typical emission wavelength renders them unsuitable for use in fiber networks. Here, we present quantum frequency conversion of near-infrared photons from a bright quantum dot to the telecommunication C-band, allowing integration with existing fiber architectures. We use a custom-built, tunable 2400 nm seed laser to convert single photons from 942 nm to 1550 nm in a difference-frequency generation process. We achieve an end-to-end conversion efficiency of ≃35%, demonstrate count rates approaching 1 MHz at 1550 nm with g(2)(0)=0.043(1), and achieve Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) visibilities of 60%. We expect this scheme to be preferable to quantum dot sources directly emitting at telecom wavelengths for fiber-based quantum networking.
Mid-infrared integrated quantum photonics is a promising platform for applications in sensing and metrology. However, there are only a few examples of on-chip single-photon sources at these wavelengths. These have limited performances with respect to their C-band counterparts. In this work, we demonstrate a new approach to generate heralded single photons in the mid-infrared on a silicon chip. By using a standard C-band pump, the inter-modal spontaneous four-wave mixing enables the generation of the herald idler at 1259.7 nm and the heralded signal at 2015 nm. The idler photon is easily detected with a common infrared single-photon detector while the signal photon is upconverted to visible before its detection. In this way, we are able to operate a mid-infrared source without the need for mid-infrared detectors and laser sources. By measuring a heralded g(2) of 0.23 ± 0.08, we demonstrate the single-photon behavior of the source as well as the feasibility of multi-photon coincidence measurements beyond 2 μm with our setup. The source exhibits a high-intrinsic heralding efficiency of (59 ± 5)%, a maximum coincidence to accidental ratio of 40.4 ± 0.9, and a generation probability of 0.70±0.10W−2.
We demonstrate theoretically the direct (filter-free) generation of spectrally uncorrelated photon pairs, and consequently high-purity heralded single photons at telecommunication wavelengths, in SOI (silicon-on-insulator) nanowaveguides via spontaneous four-wave mixing (SFWM). The inherent strong waveguide dispersion in such high-index contrast structures is employed for discrete-band phase-matching in order to suppress the pair spectral correlations, and to produce photons in the fundamental spatial mode for easy in-out coupling to single-mode optical fibers. Additionally, by optimizing the source parameters like waveguide length, dispersion and pump bandwidth, the group-velocity of generated photons is also engineered to further eliminate spectral correlations. Extensive numerical mode simulations for various waveguide widths are used to design intrinsically pure photon sources via joint spectral amplitude (JSA) engineering. Purity$>9595% is shown to be achievable in a silica-clad SOI waveguide with a cross-section 220 × 600 nm95^{2}fortypicalvaluesoflengthandpumpbandwidth.Thewavelengthoftheseheraldedsinglephotonscanbetunedintherangeof1266–1363nm(for typical values of length and pump bandwidth. The wavelength of these heralded single photons can be tuned in the range of 1266–1363 nm (fortypicalvaluesoflengthandpumpbandwidth.Thewavelengthoftheseheraldedsinglephotonscanbetunedintherangeof1266–1363nm(\sim$O-band) by varying the pump wavelength. Considering the high accuracy provided by silicon nanofabrication techniques, the feasibility of generating single photons across the wavelength range 1333–1425 nm (E-band) and 1437–1510 nm (S-band) for slightly different waveguide widths (625 nm & 650 nm) is also demonstrated. These filter-free integrated photon sources could be important for large-scale linear optical quantum computation (LOQC) and long-distance fiber-optic quantum key distribution (QKD) networks.