Analysis of control and sensing interfaces in a photonic integrated chip solution for quantum computing

Abstract

Interest in quantum computing is rapidly growing in the scientific community as such technology could be the key to enable intensive use of machine learning and big data algorithms. Quantum computers can be conceived from basic photonic elements, such as Mach-Zehnder interferometers (MZI), but they still need control mechanisms and sensing elements from traditional VLSI technology. In this study, we present an ongoing study on a potential architecture for these basic photonic circuits. We realized two Photonic Integrated Circuit (PIC) test structures embedding metallic thermistors as phase shifters and silicon photodiodes as output detectors. We present a complete characterization of the phase shifter elements for an effective on-chip PIC interaction. To induce a consistent phase shift still retaining coherence of light, we act on the phase-shifters by means of a closed-loop control. By controlling through Pulse-Width Modulation the phase shifters, we drive the path of photons accurately in the PIC, demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed configuration for the management of a photonic chip.