Tunable quantum interference using a topological source of indistinguishable photon pairs

Abstract

Sources of quantum light, in particular correlated photon pairs that are indistinguishable for all degrees of freedom, are the fundamental resource for photonic quantum computation and simulation. Although such sources have been recently realized using integrated photonics, they offer limited ability to tune the spectral and temporal correlations between generated photons because they rely on a single component, such as a ring resonator. Here, we demonstrate a tunable source of indistinguishable photon pairs using dual-pump spontaneous four-wave mixing in a topological system comprising a two-dimensional array of resonators. We exploit the linear dispersion of the topological edge states to tune the spectral bandwidth (by about 3.5×), and thereby, to tune quantum interference between generated photons by tuning the two pump frequencies. We demonstrate energy−time entanglement and, using numerical simulations, confirm the topological robustness of our source. Our results could lead to tunable, frequency-multiplexed quantum light sources for photonic quantum technologies.