Entanglement distribution using a biphoton frequency comb compatible with DWDM technology.

Abstract

We demonstrate a distribution of frequency-multiplexed polarization-entangled photon pairs over 16 frequency channels using demultiplexers for the signal and idler photons with a frequency spacing of 25 GHz, which is compatible with dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) technology. Unlike conventional frequency-multiplexed photon-pair distribution by a broadband spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) process, we use photon pairs produced as a biphoton frequency comb by SPDC inside a cavity where one of the paired photons is confined. Owing to the free spectral range of 12.5 GHz and the finesse of over 10 of the cavity, the generated photons having a narrow linewidth in one channel are separated well from those in the other channels, which minimizes channel cross-talk in advance. The observed fidelities of the photon pairs range from 81 % to 96 % in the 16 channels. The results show the usefulness of the polarization-entangled biphoton frequency comb for frequency-multiplexed entanglement distribution via a DWDM system.