Optimal coherent filtering for single noisy photons

Journal article

We introduce a filter using a noise-free quantum buffer with large optical bandwidth that can both filter temporal-spectral modes as well as interconvert them and change their frequency. We theoretically show that such quantum buffers optimally filter out temporal-spectral noise, producing identical single photons from many distinguishable noisy single-photon sources with the minimum required reduction in brightness. We then experimentally demonstrate a noise-free quantum buffer in a warm atomic system that is well matched to quantum dots. Based on these experiments, simulations show that our buffer can outperform all intensity (incoherent) filtering schemes for increasing indistinguishability.

Authors: Gao, S; Lazo-Arjona, O; Brecht, B; Kaczmarek, KT; Thomas, SE

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: American Physical Society
• Journal: Physical Review Letters
• Volume: 123
• Issue: 21
• Article number: 213604
• Publication date: 2019-11-20
• Acceptance date: 2019-10-21
• DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.123.213604
• EISSN: 1079-7114
• ISSN: 0031-9007
• Language: English
• Keywords: FFR