No Arabic abstract
Detectors inherently capable of resolving photon numbers have undergone a significant development recently, and this is expected to affect multiplexed periodic single-photon sources where such detectors can find their applications. We analyze various spatially and time-multiplexed periodic single-photon source arrangements with photon-number-resolving detectors, partly to identify the cases when they outperform those with threshold detectors. We develop a full statistical description of these arrangements in order to optimize such systems with respect to maximal single-photon probability, taking into account all relevant loss mechanisms. The model is suitable for the description of all spatial and time multiplexing schemes. Our detailed analysis of symmetric spatial multiplexing identifies a particular range of loss parameters in which the use of the new type of detectors leads to an improvement. Photon number resolution opens an additional possibility for optimizing the system in that the heralding strategy can be defined in terms of actual detected photon numbers. Our results show that this kind of optimization opens an additional parameter range of improved efficiency. Moreover, this higher efficiency can be achieved by using less multiplexed units, i.e., smaller system size as compared to threshold-detector schemes. We also extend our investigation to certain time-multiplexed schemes of actual experimental relevance. We find that the highest single-photon probability is 0.907 that can be achieved by binary bulk time multiplexers using photon-number-resolving detectors.
Single-photon detectors are widely used in modern quantum optics experiments and applications. Like all detectors, it is important for these devices to be accurately calibrated. A single-photon detector is calibrated by determining its detection efficiency; the standard method to measure this quantity requires comparison to another detector. Here, we suggest a method to measure the detection efficiency of a single photon detector without requiring an external reference detector. Our method is valid for individual single-photon detectors as well as multiplexed detectors, which are known to be photon number resolving. The method exploits the photon-number correlations of a nonlinear source, as well as the nonlinear loss of a single photon detector that occurs when multiple photons are detected simultaneously. We have analytically modeled multiplexed detectors and used the results to experimentally demonstrate calibration of a single photon detector without the need for an external reference detector.
An on-demand single-photon source is a key requirement for scaling many optical quantum technologies. A promising approach to realize an on-demand single-photon source is to multiplex an array of heralded single-photon sources using an active optical switching network. However, the performance of multiplexed sources is degraded by photon loss in the optical components and the non-unit detection efficiency of the heralding detectors. We provide a theoretical description of a general multiplexed single-photon source with lossy components and derive expressions for the output probabilities of single-photon emission and multi-photon contamination. We apply these expressions to three specific multiplexing source architectures and consider their tradeoffs in design and performance. To assess the effect of lossy components on near- and long-term experimental goals, we simulate the multiplexed sources when used for many-photon state generation under various amounts of component loss. We find that with a multiplexed source composed of switches with ~0.2-0.4 dB loss and high efficiency number-resolving detectors, a single-photon source capable of efficiently producing 20-40 photon states with low multi-photon contamination is possible, offering the possibility of unlocking new classes of experiments and technologies.
We introduce a theoretical framework which is suitable for the description of all spatial and time-multiplexed periodic single-photon sources realized or proposed thus far. Our model takes into account all possibly relevant loss mechanisms. This statistical analysis of the known schemes shows that multiplexing systems can be optimized in order to produce maximal single-photon probability for various sets of loss parameters by the appropriate choice of the number of multiplexed units of spatial multiplexers or multiplexed time intervals and the input mean photon pair number, and reveals the physical reasons of the existence of the optimum. We propose a novel time-multiplexed scheme to be realized in bulk optics, which, according to the present analysis, would have promising performance when experimentally realized. It could provide a single-photon probability of 85% with a choice of experimental parameters which are feasible according to the experiments known from the literature.
A nonclassical light source is used to demonstrate experimentally the absolute efficiency calibration of a photon-number-resolving detector. The photon-pair detector calibration method developed by Klyshko for single-photon detectors is generalized to take advantage of the higher dynamic range and additional information provided by photon-number-resolving detectors. This enables the use of brighter twin-beam sources including amplified pulse pumped sources, which increases the relevant signal and provides measurement redundancy, making the calibration more robust.
The Wigner quasiprobability distribution of a narrowband single-photon state was reconstructed by quantum state tomography using photon-number-resolving measurements with transition-edge sensors (TES) at system efficiency 58(2)%. This method makes no assumptions on the nature of the measured state, save for the limitation on photon flux imposed by the TES. Negativity of the Wigner function was observed in the raw data without any inference or correction for decoherence.