Vector Vortex Beam Emitter Embedded in a Photonic Chip

Yuan Chen, Ke-Yu Xia, Wei-Guan Shen, Jun Gao, Zeng-Quan Yan, Zhi-Qiang Jiao, Jian-Peng Dou, Hao Tang, Yan-Qing Lu, and Xian-Min Jin
Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 153601 – Published 16 April 2020
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Abstract

Vector vortex beams simultaneously carrying spin and orbital angular momentum of light promise additional degrees of freedom for modern optics and emerging resources for both classical and quantum information technologies. The inherently infinite dimensions can be exploited to enhance data capacity for sustaining the unprecedented growth in big data and internet traffic and can be encoded to build quantum computing machines in high-dimensional Hilbert space. So far, much progress has been made in the emission of vector vortex beams from a chip surface into free space; however, the generation of vector vortex beams inside a photonic chip has not been realized yet. Here, we demonstrate the first vector vortex beam emitter embedded in a photonic chip by using femtosecond laser direct writing. We achieve a conversion of vector vortex beams with an efficiency up to 30% and scalar vortex beams with an efficiency up to 74% from Gaussian beams. We also present an expanded coupled-mode model for understanding the mode conversion and the influence of the imperfection in fabrication. The fashion of embedded generation makes vector vortex beams directly ready for further transmission, manipulation, and emission without any additional interconnection. Together with the ability to be integrated as an array, our results may enable vector vortex beams to become accessible inside a photonic chip for high-capacity communication and high-dimensional quantum information processing.

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  • Received 26 February 2019
  • Accepted 23 March 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.153601

© 2020 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Atomic, Molecular & OpticalQuantum Information, Science & TechnologyGeneral Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Yuan Chen1,2, Ke-Yu Xia3,4,5,6,*, Wei-Guan Shen1,7, Jun Gao1,7, Zeng-Quan Yan1,7, Zhi-Qiang Jiao1,7, Jian-Peng Dou1,7, Hao Tang1,7, Yan-Qing Lu3,4,5,6,†, and Xian-Min Jin1,7,‡

  • 1Center for Integrated Quantum Information Technologies (IQIT), School of Physics and Astronomy and State Key Laboratory of Advanced Optical Communication Systems and Networks, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
  • 2Institute for Quantum Science and Engineering and Department of Physics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
  • 3College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China
  • 4National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China
  • 5Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional Materials, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China
  • 6Key Laboratory of Intelligent Optical Sensing and Manipulation (Nanjing University), Ministry of Education, Nanjing 210093, China
  • 7CAS Center for Excellence and Synergetic Innovation Center in Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China

  • *keyu.xia@nju.edu.cn
  • yqlu@nju.edu.cn
  • xianmin.jin@sjtu.edu.cn

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Issue

Vol. 124, Iss. 15 — 17 April 2020

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