Heralded generation of multipartite entanglement for one photon by using a single two-dimensional nonlinear photonic crystal

Abstract

We propose a compact scheme for the heralded generation of single-photon multipartite entanglement by using a single two-dimensional nonlinear photonic crystal. Studies have shown that by appropriate structure design, the single-photon entanglement shared among three spatially distinct optical modes can be generated through three concurrent spontaneous parametric down-conversion processes by using the other photon in an identical spatial mode as a trigger. Furthermore, we analyze the entanglement of such heralded single-photon tripartite W-type state theoretically. This method can be expanded for the heralded single-photon N-partite entanglement generation. This compact and stable quantum light source may act as a key ingredient in quantum information science.