No Arabic abstract
Fiber-based quantum networks require photons at telecommunications wavelengths to interconnect qubits separated by long distances. Trapped ions are leading candidates for quantum networking with high-fidelity two-qubit gates, long coherence times, and the ability to emit photons entangled with the ions internal qubit states. However, trapped ions typically emit photons at wavelengths incompatible with telecommunications fiber. Here, we demonstrate frequency conversion of visible photons emitted from a trapped ion into the telecommunications C-band. These results are an important step towards enabling a long-distance trapped ion quantum internet.
We demonstrate polarisation-preserving frequency conversion of single-photon-level light at 854 nm, resonant with a trapped-ion transition and qubit, to the 1550-nm telecom C band. A total photon in / fiber-coupled photon out efficiency of $sim$ 30 % is achieved, for a free-running photon noise rate of $sim$ 60 Hz. This performance would enable telecom conversion of 854-nm polarisation qubits, produced in existing trapped-ion systems, with a signal-to-noise ratio greater than 1. In combination with near-future trapped-ion systems, our converter would enable the observation of entanglement between an ion and a photon that has travelled more than 100 km in optical fiber: three orders of magnitude further than the state-of-the-art.
The ability to transduce non-classical states of light from one wavelength to another is a requirement for integrating disparate quantum systems that take advantage of telecommunications-band photons for optical fiber transmission of quantum information and near-visible, stationary systems for manipulation and storage. In addition, transducing a single-photon source at 1.3 {mu}m to visible wavelengths for detection would be integral to linear optical quantum computation due to the challenges of detection in the near-infrared. Recently, transduction at single-photon power levels has been accomplished through frequency upconversion, but it has yet to be demonstrated for a true single-photon source. Here, we transduce the triggered single-photon emission of a semiconductor quantum dot at 1.3 {mu}m to 710 nm with a total detection (internal conversion) efficiency of 21% (75%). We demonstrate that the 710 nm signal maintains the quantum character of the 1.3 {mu}m signal, yielding a photon anti-bunched second-order intensity correlation, g^(2)(t), that shows the optical field is composed of single photons with g^(2)(0) = 0.165 < 0.5.
Experimental results are presented on the efficiency limits for a quantum interface between a matter-based qubit and a photonic qubit. Using a trapped ion in an optical cavity, we obtain a single ion-entangled photon at the cavity output with a probability of 0.69(3). The performance of our system is shown to saturate the upper limit to photon-collection probability from a quantum emitter in a cavity, set by the emitters electronic structure and by the cavity parameters. The probability for generating and detecting the ion-entangled fiber-coupled photon is 0.462(3), a five-fold increase over the previous best performance. Finally, the generation and detection of up to 15 sequential polarised photons demonstrates the ability of a trapped ion to serve as a multi-photon source. The comparison between measured probabilities and predicted bounds is relevant for quantum emitters beyond trapped ions, in particular, for the design of future systems optimising photon collection from, and absorption in, quantum matter.
As one of the most striking features of quantum mechanics, quantum correlations are at the heart of quantum information science. Detection of correlations usually requires access to all the correlated subsystems. However, in many realistic scenarios this is not feasible since only some of the subsystems can be controlled and measured. Such cases can be treated as open quantum systems interacting with an inaccessible environment. Initial system-environment correlations play a fundamental role for the dynamics of open quantum systems. Following a recent proposal, we exploit the impact of the correlations on the open-system dynamics to detect system-environment quantum correlations without accessing the environment. We use two degrees of freedom of a trapped ion to model an open system and its environment. The present method does not require any assumptions about the environment, the interaction or the initial state and therefore provides a versatile tool for the study of quantum systems.
We demonstrate a new method for the direct measurement of atomic dipole transition matrix elements based on techniques developed for quantum information purposes. The scheme consists of measuring dispersive and absorptive off-resonant light-ion interactions and is applicable to many atomic species. We determine the dipole matrix element pertaining to the Ca II H line, i.e. the 4$^2$S$_{1/2} leftrightarrow $ 4$^2$P$_{1/2}$ transition of $^{40}$Ca$^+$, for which we find the value 2.8928(43) ea$_0$. Moreover, the method allows us to deduce the lifetime of the 4$^2$P$_{1/2}$ state to be 6.904(26) ns, which is in agreement with predictions from recent theoretical calculations and resolves a longstanding discrepancy between calculated values and experimental results.