Light-matter Interface Research Articles

Room temperature optical coupling of neodymium ions to photonic crystal L3 cavity in gallium nitride semiconductor

We demonstrate the optical coupling of implanted neodymium (Nd) ions in a photonic crystal (PhC)-L3 cavity on GaN at RT. The structure of the PhC-L3 cavity is designed by the electromagnetic field simulation to enhance the 4 F 3/2–4 I 9/2 and 4 F 3/2–4 I 11/2 transitions (916 and 1107 nm) in Nd3+. The highest enhancement ratio of 20-fold is achieved under our measurement conditions by the enhancement of spontaneous emission rate due to the Purcell effect in addition to the improvement of light collection efficiency. These results pave the way for the development of Ln-doped GaN based quantum light–matter interface and nanophotonics.

Switching Chirality in Arrays of Shape-Reconfigurable Spindle Microparticles.

The giant circular photo-galvanic effect is realized in chiral metals when illuminated by circularly polarized light. However, the structure itself is not switchable nor is the crystal chirality in the adjacent chiral domains. Here spindle-shaped liquid crystalline elastomer microparticles that can switch from prolate to spherical to oblate reversibly upon heating above the nematic to isotropic transition temperature are synthesized. When arranged in a honeycomb lattice, the continuous shape change of the microparticles leads to lattice reconfiguration, from a right-handed chiral state to an achiral one, then to a left-handed chiral state, without breaking the translational symmetry. Accordingly, the sign of rotation of the polarized light passing through the lattices changes as measured by time-domain terahertz spectroscopy. Further, it can locally alter the chirality in the adjacent domains using near-infrared light illumination. The reconfigurable chiral microarrays will allow us to explore non-trivial symmetry-protected transport modes of topological lattices at the light-matter interface. Specifically, the ability to controllably create chiral states at the boundary of the achiral/chiral domains will lead to rich structures emerging from the interplay of symmetry and topology.

Probing and harnessing photonic Fermi arc surface states using light-matter interactions.

Fermi arcs, i.e., surface states connecting topologically distinct Weyl points, represent a paradigmatic manifestation of the topological aspects of Weyl physics. We investigate a light-matter interface based on the photonic counterpart of these states and prove that it can lead to phenomena with no analog in other setups. First, we show how to image the Fermi arcs by studying the spontaneous decay of one or many emitters coupled to the system's border. Second, we demonstrate that, exploiting the negative refraction of these modes, the Fermi arc surface states can act as a robust quantum link, enabling, e.g., the occurrence of perfect quantum state transfer between the considered emitters or the formation of highly entangled states. In addition to their fundamental interest, our findings evidence the potential offered by the photonic Fermi arc light-matter interfaces for the design of more robust quantum technologies.

Peculiarities of exciton formation in 2D semiconductor nanostructures induced by quantum electromagnetic field under nonlinear self-phase modulation

Specific features of the excitation of a 2D semiconductor nanosystem by non-classical light in a solid state micro-resonator are found under the impact of the Kerr phase nonlinearity in the cavity. Different regimes of excitation are revealed in dependence on the efficiency of the nonlinearity. A negative impact of the nonlinear self-phase modulation on the excitation is found to be compensated by proper choice of the field frequency detuning. The possibility to controllably enhance a certain excitation channel by varying field frequency detuning is demonstrated and the value of the optimal detuning is found analytically. The effect of transfer of non-classical features from the field to the electronic subsystem is revealed. The formation of the photon-like non-classical excitonic states is demonstrated. The obtained results seem to be a basis for the creation of the light–matter interface and development of quantum information algorithms in solid state nanosystems.

Photon bound state dynamics from a single artificial atom

The interaction between photons and a single two-level atom constitutes a fundamental paradigm in quantum physics. The nonlinearity provided by the atom leads to a strong dependence of the light–matter interface on the number of photons interacting with the two-level system within its emission lifetime. This nonlinearity unveils strongly correlated quasiparticles known as photon bound states, giving rise to key physical processes such as stimulated emission and soliton propagation. Although signatures consistent with the existence of photon bound states have been measured in strongly interacting Rydberg gases, their hallmark excitation-number-dependent dispersion and propagation velocity have not yet been observed. Here we report the direct observation of a photon-number-dependent time delay in the scattering off a single artificial atom—a semiconductor quantum dot coupled to an optical cavity. By scattering a weak coherent pulse off the cavity–quantum electrodynamics system and measuring the time-dependent output power and correlation functions, we show that single photons and two- and three-photon bound states incur different time delays, becoming shorter for higher photon numbers. This reduced time delay is a fingerprint of stimulated emission, where the arrival of two photons within the lifetime of an emitter causes one photon to stimulate the emission of another.

Using molecules as a quantum interface to store ultrashort optical vortices

We exploit gas-phase molecules as light-matter interface to store an orbital angular momentum (OAM) or a superposition of OAM states (OAM-based photonic qubits) carried by ultrashort laser pulses. The interplay between spin angular momentum and OAM is exploited to encode the amplitude and spatial phase information of light beams into rotational coherences of molecules. This last is restored on-demand over tens of picoseconds with a reading beam by taking advantage of field-free molecular alignment. The underlying mechanism at the origin of the storage can be interpreted by the spatial structuring of the molecular sample induced by the field. The excitation indeed produces an inhomogeneous spatial distribution of molecular alignment (amplitude & orientation) whose periodical revivals associated with the quantum beatings of the rotational wavepacket enables to restore the spatial beam structure on-demand. The strategy is successfully demonstrated in CO2 molecules at room temperature. Besides applicability as storage medium with THz bandwidth application, the use of molecules as light-matter interface opens new functionalities in terms of optical processing and versatile control of OAM fields.

Photon blockade and single-photon generation with multiple quantum emitters

Generation and manipulation of single photons are at the heart of photon-based quantum information processing. An ensemble of quantum emitters (QEs) as a versatile light-matter interface are very promising for quantum technology such as quantum storage and repeater. However, it is commonly believed that many QEs are unable to create photon blockade and generate single photons with high purity due to the multiexcitation effect. Here, we show efficient photon blockade and single-photon generation with a few to ten QEs by suppressing multiexcitation with a detuned auxiliary cavity. Because the auxiliary cavity induces a strong dipole-dipole interaction among the QEs, these QEs can be treated as a two-level superatom. By coupling this superatom to another collecting cavity, efficient photon blockade with a high transmission is obtained. With the same setup, single-photon emission can also be achieved with yield and purity larger than $90%$ simultaneously even in the bad-cavity limit. Our method may open up a simple route to generate and manipulate single photons on demand.

High-fidelity multiphoton-entangled cluster state with solid-state quantum emitters in photonic nanostructures

We propose a complete architecture for deterministic generation of entangled multiphoton states. Our approach utilizes periodic driving of a quantum-dot emitter and an efficient light-matter interface enabled by a photonic crystal waveguide. We assess the quality of the photonic states produced from a real system by including all intrinsic experimental imperfections. Importantly, the protocol is robust against the nuclear spin bath dynamics due to a naturally built-in refocusing method reminiscent to spin echo. We demonstrate the feasibility of producing Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger and one-dimensional cluster states with fidelities and generation rates exceeding those achieved with conventional ``fusion'' methods in current state-of-the-art experiments. The proposed hardware constitutes a scalable and resource-efficient approach towards implementation of measurement-based quantum computing and quantum communication.

Photon control and coherent interactions via lattice dark states in atomic arrays

Ordered atomic arrays with subwavelength spacing have emerged as an efficient and versatile light-matter interface, where emitters respond collectively and form subradiant lattice modes with supressed decay rate. Here, we demonstrate that such lattice dark states can be individually addressed and manipulated by applying a spatial modulation of the atomic detuning. More specifically, we show that lattice dark states can be used to store and retrieve single photons with near-unit efficiency, as well as to control the temporal, frequency and spatial degrees of freedom of the emitted electromagnetic field. Additionally, we discuss how to engineer arbitrary coherent interactions between multiple dark states. These results pave the way towards building a quantum platform that can equally act as a quantum memory and a photon shaper capable of producing states of light relevant in quantum information protocols.

Quantum Control of the Tin-Vacancy Spin Qubit in Diamond

Group-IV color centers in diamond are a promising light-matter interface for quantum networking devices. The negatively charged tin-vacancy center (SnV) is particularly interesting, as its large spin-orbit coupling offers strong protection against phonon dephasing and robust cyclicity of its optical transitions towards spin-photon entanglement schemes. Here, we demonstrate multi-axis coherent control of the SnV spin qubit via an all-optical stimulated Raman drive between the ground and excited states. We use coherent population trapping and optically driven electronic spin resonance to confirm coherent access to the qubit at 1.7 K, and obtain spin Rabi oscillations at a rate of $\Omega/2\pi$=3.6(1) MHz. All-optical Ramsey interferometry reveals a spin dephasing time of $T_2^*$=1.3(3)$\mu$s and two-pulse dynamical decoupling already extends the spin coherence time to $T_2$=0.33(14) ms. Combined with transform-limited photons and integration into photonic nanostructures, our results make the SnV a competitive spin-photon building block for quantum networks.

The squeezable nanojunction as a tunable light-matter interface for studying photoluminescence of 2D materials

We study photoluminescence (PL) of MoS2 monolayers in optical cavities that can be tuned in operando. Technically, we use the recently developed squeezable nanojunction (SNJ). It is a versatile mechanical setup that has been useful to study thermoelectric effects at electronic tunneling distances. Here, we emphasize on a cavity with 0–3 micrometer distance with optical access. Due to the tunable cavity, we see strong distortions of PL spectra. By an analysis of the ensemble, we identify a normalization protocol that gives access to disentangling the contributions from excitation, gating and emission. The systematic evolution of data reconfirms the drastic influence of the local electromagnetic mode budget on the spectral properties. The experiment further underscores the broadband application range of the SNJ technique, able for combining (nano-) electronic functionality with optical access and a tunable light-matter interface.

Quantifying Quantum Coherence in Polariton Condensates

We theoretically and experimentally investigate quantum features of an interacting light-matter system from a multidisciplinary perspective, unifying approaches from semiconductor physics, quantum optics, and quantum information science. To this end, we quantify the amount of quantum coherence that results from the quantum superposition of Fock states, constituting a measure of the resourcefulness of the produced state for modern quantum protocols. As an archetypal example of a hybrid light-matter interface, we study a polariton condensate and implement a numerical model to predict its properties. Our simulation is confirmed by our proof-of-concept experiment in which we measure and analyze the phase-space distributions of the emitted light. Specifically, we drive a polariton microcavity across the condensation threshold and observe the transition from an incoherent thermal state to a coherent state in the emission, thus confirming the build-up of quantum coherence in the condensate itself.

Photonic integration of Er3+:Y2SiO5 with thin-film lithium niobate by flip chip bonding.

Rare earth ions are known as promising candidates for building quantum light-matter interface. However, tunable photonic cavity access to rare earth ions in their desired host crystal remains challenging. Here, we demonstrate the integration of erbium doped yttrium orthosilicate (Er3+:Y2SiO5) with thin-film lithium niobate photonic circuit by plasma-activated direct flip chip bonding. Resonant coupling to erbium ions is realized by on-chip electro-optically tuned high Q lithium niobate micro-ring resonators. Fluorescence and absorption of erbium ions at 1536.48 nm are measured in the waveguides, while the collective ion-cavity cooperativity with micro-ring resonators is assessed to be 0.36. This work presents a versatile scheme for future rare earth ion integrated quantum devices.

Stochastic dynamics of optically bound matter levitated in vacuum

Optically levitated nanoparticles in a vacuum offer a light–matter interface with broad and easy tunability of all key system parameters. However, the majority of previously reported experimental achievements in this area have only dealt with a single levitated object. Here, we demonstrate optical binding between multiple levitated objects confined in cross-polarized counter-propagating laser beams in a vacuum. We characterize the level of interparticle interaction, quantify its nonlinearity for various configurations of the system, and demonstrate its broad tunability. Our methodology for quantitative characterization of optically bound structures is supported by an extensive theoretical description and validated by numerical simulations. We believe the presented results represent a step toward the development of a framework of levitated optomechanics of complex coupled systems with a controlled level of coupling nonlinearity for experimental studies including, for example, mesoscopic entanglement.

Atomic-waveguide quantum electrodynamics

Atom arrays are a new type of quantum light-matter interface. Here, we propose to employ one-dimensional ordered arrays as atomic waveguides. These arrays support optical guided modes that do not decay into free space. We show that these modes can be harnessed to mediate tunable, long-range interactions between additional "impurity qubits" coupled to the chain, without need for photonic structures. The efficient coupling between qubits and atomic waveguides enables the realization of tunable qubit-qubit interactions, which can be short- or long-range, dissipative or coherent, as well as chiral. Moreover, owing to the two-level nature of atoms, these waveguides are intrinsically quantum. In contrast to classical waveguides, where photons do not interact with each other, atomic waveguides display strong non-linearities, which create a tunable dissipative channel for qubit-qubit interactions, and opens the door to the exploration of many-body physics between guided photons. This physics is universal as it only relies on photon interference and can also be observed with other types of quantum emitters, such as those in molecular or solid-state systems.

Collective photon routing improvement in a dissipative quantum emitter chain strongly coupled to a chiral waveguide QED ladder

We examine the routing scheme of single photons in a one-dimensional periodic chain of two-level quantum emitters (QEs) strongly coupled to two waveguides in a ladder configuration. It is known that for a single-emitter chiral waveguide ladder setting, photons can be redirected from one waveguide to another with a $100\%$ probability (deterministically) provided the resonance condition is met and spontaneous emission is completely ignored. However, when the spontaneous emission is included the routing scheme becomes considerably imperfect. In this paper, we present a solution to this issue by considering a chain of QEs where in addition to the waveguide mediated interaction among emitters, a direct and infinitely long-ranged dipole-dipole interaction (DDI) is taken into account. We show that the collective effects arising from the strong DDI protect the routing scheme from spontaneous emission loss. In particular, we demonstrate that the router operation can be improved from $58\%$ to $95\%$ in a typical dissipative chiral light-matter interface consisting of nanowires modes strongly interacting with a linear chain of 30 quantum dots. With the recent experimental progress in chiral quantum optics, trapped QEs evanescently coupled to tapered nanofibers can serve as a platform for the experimental realization of this work.

Cavity-Enhanced Photon Emission from a Single Germanium-Vacancy Center in a Diamond Membrane

The nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond has been explored extensively as a light-matter interface for quantum information applications, however it is limited by low coherent photon emission and spectral instability. Here, we present a promising interface based on an alternate defect with superior optical properties (the germanium-vacancy) coupled to a finesse $\approx11{,}000$ fiber cavity, resulting in a $31^{+11}_{-15}$-fold increase in the spectral density of emission. This work sets the stage for cryogenic experiments, where we predict a measurable increase in the spontaneous emission rate.

Overlapping two standing waves in a microcavity for a multi-atom photon interface.

We develop a light-matter interface enabling strong and uniform coupling between a chain of cold atoms and photons of an optical cavity. This interface is a fiber Fabry-Perot cavity, doubly resonant for both the wavelength of the atomic transition and for a geometrically commensurate red-detuned intracavity trapping lattice. Fulfilling the condition of a strong and uniform atom-photon coupling requires optimization of the spatial overlap between the two standing waves in the cavity. In a strong-coupling cavity, where the mode waists and Rayleigh range are small, we derive the expression of the optimal trapping wavelength, taking into account the Gouy phase. The main parameter controlling the overlap of the standing waves is the relative phase shift at the reflection on the cavity mirrors between the two wavelengths, for which we derive the optimal value. We have built a microcavity optimized according to these results, employing custom-made mirrors with engineered reflection phase for both wavelengths. We present a method to measure with high precision the relative phase shift at reflection, which allows us to determine the spatial overlap of the two modes in this cavity.

Building Blocks for Quantum Network Based on Group‐IV Split‐Vacancy Centers in Diamond

AbstractOne ultimate goal of quantum information processing is to construct a quantum network for direct sharing of quantum information between distant parties based on stationary qubits for information storage and flying qubits for information transmission. This requires long‐lived quantum memories, efficient light–matter interface, and deterministic quantum gate operations. Among matter qubits, the electron spin of nitrogen vacancy center in diamond is an appealing option for its long coherence time at room temperature, deterministic microwave control, and optical preparation and readout of the qubit. However, its poor optical properties, including weak zero‐phonon‐line emission and large spectral diffusion, limit its potential for large‐scale deployment in quantum nodes. This has motivated the investigation for alternative quantum emitters that combine long‐time memory and coherent optical properties together. The emerging group‐IV split‐vacancy color centers in diamond, such as silicon‐vacancy, germanium‐vacancy, tin‐vacancy, and lead‐vacancy centers, are promising candidates of this ongoing exploration. These quantum emitters simultaneously possess microsecond spin coherence time and optically bright transitions with narrow linewidths. This review reports recent efforts on extending the spin coherence time of these color centers via temperature, strain, and charge control, which paves the road towards constructing solid‐based matter–photon interface for quantum network applications.

Deterministic Shaping and Reshaping of Single-Photon Temporal Wave Functions.

Thorough control of the optical mode of a single photon is essential for quantum information applications. We present a comprehensive experimental and theoretical study of a light-matter interface based on cavity quantum electrodynamics. We identify key parameters like the phases of the involved light fields and demonstrate absolute, flexible, and accurate control of the time-dependent complex-valued wave function of a single photon over several orders of magnitude. This capability will be an important tool for the development of distributed quantum systems with multiple components that interact via photons.