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Multimode and Long-Lived Quantum Correlations Between Photons and Spins in a Crystal

Cyril Laplane, Pierre Jobez, Jean Etesse, Nicolas Gisin, and Mikael Afzelius
Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 210501 – Published 24 May 2017
Physics logo See Viewpoint: A Solid Footing for a Quantum Repeater
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Abstract

The realization of quantum networks and quantum repeaters remains an outstanding challenge in quantum communication. These rely on the entanglement of remote matter systems, which in turn requires the creation of quantum correlations between a single photon and a matter system. A practical way to establish such correlations is via spontaneous Raman scattering in atomic ensembles, known as the Duan-Lukin-Cirac-Zoller (DLCZ) scheme. However, time multiplexing is inherently difficult using this method, which leads to low communication rates even in theory. Moreover, it is desirable to find solid-state ensembles where such matter-photon correlations could be generated. Here we demonstrate quantum correlations between a single photon and a spin excitation in up to 12 temporal modes, in a Eu1513+-doped Y2SiO5 crystal, using a novel DLCZ approach that is inherently multimode. After a storage time of 1 ms, the spin excitation is converted into a second photon. The quantum correlation of the generated photon pair is verified by violating a Cauchy-Schwarz inequality. Our results show that solid-state rare-earth-ion-doped crystals could be used to generate remote multimode entanglement, an important resource for future quantum networks.

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  • Received 2 February 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.210501

© 2017 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Quantum Information, Science & TechnologyCondensed Matter, Materials & Applied PhysicsAtomic, Molecular & Optical

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A Solid Footing for a Quantum Repeater

Published 24 May 2017

Crystals with rare-earth ions could lead to quantum repeaters that enable secure quantum communications over long distances.

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Authors & Affiliations

Cyril Laplane, Pierre Jobez*, Jean Etesse, Nicolas Gisin, and Mikael Afzelius

  • Groupe de Physique Appliquée, Université de Genève, CH-1211 Genève 4, Switzerland

  • *Present address: Institut für Experimentalphysik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstraße 25, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria.
  • mikael.afzelius@unige.ch

See Also

Solid-State Source of Nonclassical Photon Pairs with Embedded Multimode Quantum Memory

Kutlu Kutluer, Margherita Mazzera, and Hugues de Riedmatten
Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 210502 (2017)

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Vol. 118, Iss. 21 — 26 May 2017

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