Quantum sources that produce entangled photon pairs are crucial and indispensable components in quantum applications. Entangled photon sources based on nonlinear crystals or waveguides require bulky free-space optics and precision alignment. In contrast, fiber-based entangled photon sources, where entangled photon pairs are directly generated in an optical fiber, make quantum technologies less costly, more practical and accessible, as well as compatible with telecom fiber network infrastructure. In this talk, we review the development of fiber-based entangled and hyper-entangled photon pair sources based on the periodically-poled silica fiber (PPSF). We demonstrate practical and high quality entanglement sources at room temperature, compact and alignment free. The technology has now been commercialized. My talk will reveal the key technological advantages of using PPSF as a nonlinear material for complex quantum state generation, including entangled, hyper-entangled, and hypo-entangled state generation. I will also briefly discuss the applications of polarization-frequency hyper-entanglement and characterization of high-dimensional entanglement systems, including deriving entanglement witnesses using machine learning.
We use polarization-dependent gain in a twisted birefringent medium to realize a sub-megahertz linewidth optical feature. Our approach is loss-free, resonator-free, and cost-effective, offering high sensitivity and on-demand tunability.
Fibre optics is a mature technology that revolutionized telecommunication. Quantum photonics is an emerging technology still under development. The fusion of the two can bring technologically-robust solutions for quantum applications. Here we give one concrete example of a fiber-optic entangled photon source. Free of alignment, fiber coupling or any birefringence compensating schemes, it is arguably world’s simplest polarization-entangled photon source, and perfectly compatible with the vast fibre-optic network infrastructure. Furthermore, using it to form a fibre-based nonlinear interferometer results in the coupling of the spectral domain with the polarization domain, and tunability in both domains. By manipulating the dispersion and birefringence properties of the linear medium in the interferometer, we experimentally demonstrate altering the biphoton spectrum through biphoton interference, as well as tuning the degree of polarization entanglement. Due to the low-birefringence nature of both the nonlinear and linear media in the interferometer, we can preserve the high-quality polarization entanglement while shaping the biphoton spectrum. Additionally, the coupling of the polarization degree of freedom with the spectral degree of freedom, allowing us to tune the degree of entanglement by simply tuning wavelength. Our fibre-based quantum entanglement sources demonstrate a great deal of flexibility in entanglement engineering for future fibre-optic quantum networks.
We detail the design for a better photonic-crystal slab (PCS) based sensor for ultrasound sensing. The sensing mechanism relies upon the sensitivity S of the optical resonance of the PCS to the index of the surrounding medium, the quality factor Q of the resonance, as well as the surrounding medium’s photoelastic coefficient. Traditionally, the interplay between S and Q in PCS devices means that increasing one will cause a decrease in the other. Here, we show that the use of so-called bound states in the continuum (BIC)-based resonance allow for a high Q (> 1e5) while maintaining a nominal S (~ 350 nm/RIU). We anticipate using BIC-based PCS sensors to have a 100x improvement in the ultrasound sensitivity over previous PCS devices.
Silicon photonics-based photonic crystal slab (PCS) ultrasound sensors have recently been demonstrated to have properties such as broadband (1-40 MHz) detection and sub-kPa sensitivities. Here, we study the effect of a thin PMMA overlayer (~ 300 nm) on the sensitivity of a PCS sensor. The presence of this overlayer can result in almost 50% of the electric field energy of the PCS guided resonance to reside outside of the slab. This allows for the PCS to be sensitized to multiple mechanisms, including photoelastic change and mechanical deformation of the overlayer, for ultrasonic detection. These mechanisms are investigated in this work.
Silicon Photonics-based sensors can provide low cost, high sensitivity optical detection solutions in ultrasound and photoacoustic (PA) imaging. We demonstrate experimentally the measurement of ultrasound (2.5-8.5 MHz) in water using photonic crystal slab (PCS) nanostructure devices. Each PCS is composed of a periodic array of nanoholes, etched into silicon nitride (t=160 nm), on top of a silicon dioxide layer, and silicon substrate. The PCS devices have guided resonances that peak at ~ 1550 nm, with linewidths that vary from 0.7 to 5.5 nm.
One type of PCS device includes a PCS nanostructure located above a thin micro-fabricated silicon membrane (~ 10 micron thick). Membrane deformation by incoming ultrasound waves induce resonance changes in the PCS spectral peak location (i.e., drum effect). We observe these drum-effect PCS devices to have acoustic sensitivities that are very narrowband (with bandwidths ~ 1 MHz), with a 300-micron diameter drum device found to have a peak sensitivity at 5 MHz and a noise equivalent pressure (NEP) of 2.0 kPa (72 Pa/rt Hz).
In another mechanism, the sensitivity of the PCS nanostructures to changes in the ambient index of refraction is used. A pressure wave in water that impinges the PCS is accompanied by changes in the water's index of refraction, which causes the resonance peak of the PCS to shift. The acoustic sensitivities of these PCS devices is found to be broadband (> 6 MHz), in contrast to the drum-effect devices, with an NEP of less than 0.5 kPa (6.7 Pa/rt Hz). These devices can potentially allow for optics-based monolithic ultrasound sensor arrays, optimized for PA imaging.
We have recently found that a long length of fiber of up to 1 km terminated with an in-fiber cavity structure can detect
vibrations over a frequency range from 5 Hz to 2 kHz. We want to determine whether the sensor (including packaging)
can be optimized to detect vibrations at even higher frequencies. The structure can be used as a distributed vibration
sensor mounted on large motors and other rotating machines to capture the entire frequency spectrum of the associated
vibration signals, and therefore, replace the many accelerometers, which add to maintenance cost. The sensor may also
help detect in-slot vibrations which cause intermittent contact leading to sparking under high voltages inside air-cooled
generators. However, that requires the sensor to detect frequencies associated with vibration sparking, ranging from 6
kHz to 15 kHz. Acoustic vibration monitoring may need sensing at even higher frequencies (30 kHz to 150 kHz)
associated with partial discharge (PD) in generators and transformers. Detecting lower frequencies in the range 2 Hz to
200 Hz makes the sensor suitable for seismic studies and falls well into the vibrations associated with rotating machines.
Another application of interest is corrosion detection in large re-enforced concrete structures by inserting the sensor
along a long hole drilled around structures showing signs of corrosion. The frequency response for the proposed longgauge
vibration sensor depends on packaging.
Recently, we found that by terminating a long length of fiber of up to 1 km with an in-fiber cavity structure, the entire structure can detect vibrations over a frequency range from 5 Hz to 100 Hz. We want to determine whether the structure (including packaging) can be optimized to detect vibrations at even higher frequencies. The structure can be used as a distributed vibration sensor mounted on large motors and other rotating machines to capture the entire frequency spectrum of the associated vibration signals, and therefore, replace the many accelerometers, which add to the maintenance cost. Similarly, it will help detect in-slot vibrations which cause intermittent contact leading to sparking under high voltages inside air-cooled generators. However, that will require the sensor to detect frequencies associated with vibration sparking, ranging from 6 kHz to 15 kHz. Then, at even higher frequencies, the structure can be useful to detect acoustic vibrations (30 kHz to 150 kHz) associated with partial discharge (PD) in generators and transformers. Detecting lower frequencies in the range 2 Hz to 200 Hz makes the sensor suitable for seismic studies and falls well into the vibrations associated with rotating machines. Another application of interest is corrosion detection in large reenforced concrete structures by inserting the sensor along a long hole drilled around structures showing signs of corrosion. The frequency response for the proposed long-gauge vibration sensor depends on packaging.
Low Level Light Therapy (LLLT) has been implicated to stimulate tissue, promoting healing and reducing pain. One of
the potential pathways stimulated by LLLT relates to the electron transport chain, where photon quantum energy can
induce a change in the biochemical reactions within the cell. The aim of this study is to assess the feasibility to exploit
light additionally as a diagnostic tool to determine tissue physiological states, particularly in quantifying the changes in
redox states of Cytochrome C as a result of induced LLLT biochemical reactions.
We report on the room temperature photoluminescence (PL) at 1.54 μm from erbium-doped silicon rich silicon oxide
(ErSRSO) films, fabricated on fused quartz by thermal evaporation followed by thermal-annealing in air. PL
measurements show maximum intensity in samples annealed at 1000°C for four hours. X-ray diffraction (XRD)
structural analyses show that annealing caused the formation of active Er3+ (Er2O3) centers. XRD and PL results show
that increasing Er2O3 concentration does not necessarily lead to an increase in photoluminescence. Compositional
analysis using Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy (TOF-SIMS) depth-profiling shows a strong
correlation between the presence of contiguous Si rich regions and Er2O3 centers on the one hand and the observed PL
on the other. The combination of PL, XRD, and TOF-SIMS results indicate the presence of silicon nanoclusters and its
sensitization of erbium.
In most implementations of quantum-key-distribution (QKD) protocols the secure keys originate from single-photon signals. However, due to the unavoidable channel losses and the low efficiencies of single photon detectors, the key generation rate of a single-photon QKD system is low. Recently, there has been a growing interest in the Gaussianmodulated coherent state (GMCS) QKD protocol because it can be implemented with conventional laser sources and high efficiency homodyne-detectors. Here, we present our experimental results with a fully fiber-based one-way GMCS QKD system. Our system employed a double Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) configuration in which the weak quantum signal and the strong local-oscillator (LO) go through the same fiber between Alice and Bob. We employed two novel techniques to suppress system excess noise. First, to suppress the LO's leakage, an important contribution to the excess noise, we implemented a scheme combining polarization and frequency multiplexing, achieving an extinction ratio of 70dB. Second, to further minimize the system excess noise due to phase drift of the double MZI, the sender simply remaps her data by performing a rotation operation. Under a "realistic model", the secure key rates determined with a 5km and a 20km fiber link are 0.3bit/pulse and 0.05bit/pulse, respectively. These key rates are significantly higher
than that of a practical BB84 QKD system.
We present three new interferometric techniques for dispersion characterization covering from millimeter waveguides to kilometers of fibers. The first is a Frequency-Shifted Interferometer (FSI) that measures fibers from meters to tens of kilometers. The second is a three-wave Single-Arm Interferometer (SAI), where the envelope of a three-wave interference pattern yields the second-order dispersion directly. It is suitable for fibers from centimeters to >1m. The
third is a Common-Path Interferometer (CPI) that measures dispersion of millimeter-long fibers/waveguides. These techniques offer high precision in their respective ranges, and are all "single-arm" interferometers: the two interfering beams go through the same arm of the interferometer. They are simple, low-cost, and more resilient to phase and polarization instabilities than conventional interferometric techniques for dispersion measurement.
KEYWORDS: Cladding, Beam shaping, Single mode fibers, Fiber lasers, High power fiber lasers, Laser applications, Laser therapeutics, Near field optics, Computer engineering, Medical laser equipment
Laser beam shaping is an important subject in industrial and medical applications of lasers since different applications
may require different laser intensity distributions. Recently we demonstrated successfully an all-fiber laser beam shaping
device that could transform a Gaussian shaped laser beam into a uniform or ring-shaped beam in 1.5 μm wavelength
region. In this paper we present the work of the beam shaping in 1.0 μm wavelength region to make it compatible to Yb-doped
high power fiber laser. The device uses a long-period grating to couple a portion of core-mode, LP01 into a low-order
mth-radial cladding mode LP0m. Interference of the two modes could reduce field at the centre and enhance the field
in the first or second ring of the cladding mode to transform the Gaussian-shaped laser beam to an intensity uniform
beam. The design parameters that affect the beam shaping will be discussed and the results of the interference from two
cladding modes, LP03 and LP04 will be presented.
KEYWORDS: Sensors, Quantum key distribution, Single photon, Quantum efficiency, Signal detection, Information security, Homodyne detection, Signal attenuation, Phase measurement, Transmittance
The performance of a practical quantum key distribution (QKD) system is often limited by the multi-photon state
emission of its source and the dark counts of its detectors. Here, we present two methods to improve its performance.
The first method is decoy state QKD: the sender randomly sends out weak coherent states with various average photon
numbers (which are named as signal state and decoy states). In [14,15], we have performed the first experimental
implementation of decoy state QKD over 15km and 60km respectively, thus dramatically increasing the distance and
secure key generation rate of practical QKD systems. Our work has been followed up by many research groups
worldwide [16-18]. The second scheme is QKD with "dual detectors" [19]: the legitimate receiver randomly uses either a
fast (but noisy) detector or a quiet (but slow) detector to measure the incoming quantum signals. The measurement
results from the quiet detector can be used to upper bound the eavesdropper's information, while the measurement results
from the fast detector are used to generate a secure key. We applied this idea to various QKD protocols. Simulation
results demonstrated significant improvements in both BB84 protocol with ideal single photon source and Gaussian-modulated
coherent states protocol.
Abstract: This paper describes the design and implementation of an advanced photonics experiment aimed at the undergraduate students’ level. The experiment uses erbium-doped fiber to implement three functions through slight modifications of the setup. The functions are a broadband light source, a multi-wavelength optical amplifier, and a tunable fiber laser. As part of an Optical Communication Systems course, the experiment is targeted towards fourth year engineering students at the University of Toronto. The design of the experiment is especially attractive for large classes, where feasibility and cost effectiveness play a pivotal role. In addition the scope of the experiment was designed to illustrate a broad set of topics covered in the course, where students gain knowledge in: i) constructing a broadband source using the erbium-doped fiber amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and characterize its emission spectrum; ii) modifying the ASE source into a broadband multi-wavelength erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA); studying gain tilt and noise figure (NF) of the EDFA with respect to input and pump parameters; and finally, iv) transforming the EDFA into a tunable erbium doped fiber laser (EDFL). Through this series of experiments, students will (i) appreciate the versatility of an important optical gain medium; (ii) develop a deeper understanding of the salient features of optical gain including stimulated and spontaneous emission, principles of laser and amplifier action; (iii) learn, through hands on experience, to operate advanced optical components and test and measurement instruments which all form an integral part of the optical communication industry; and finally(iv) integrate the building blocks they have encountered in textbooks into operational optical devices.
Extending the amplification bandwidth of erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) is one of the most cost-effective means of expanding the fiber transmission capacity. In conventional aluminosilicate EDFAs, gain drops sharply beyond 1605nm. Several new or modified erbium host materials have been used to extend the amplification band to beyond the conventional L-band, such as tellurite, bismuth-oxide, antimony silicate, P-doped aluminosilicate, and phosphosilicate EDFAs. Although tellurite and bismuth-oxide based EDFAs have wider bandwidths compared to that of demonstrated phosphosilicate (P-Si) EDFAs, P-Si EDFAs have been shown to provide better noise performance when the gain bandwidth is extended to 1620 nm. In addition, unlike tellurite or bismuth-oxide fibers, P-Si EDF does not exhibit increased nonlinearity or weakened reliability, compared to conventional aluminosilicate EDFs. Furthermore, phosphosilicate erbium fiber is compatible with other silica fibers and can be fusion spliced to the standard SMF silica fiber with high return loss and extremely low splice loss. These properties make the P-Si EDF a top contender for commercial extended L-band EDFAs.
One key issue in the design of the extended L-band amplifiers is the optimization of power conversion efficiency while keeping the noise figure low. In this paper, we explore various amplifier configurations and compare their performances experimentally. We report high-power P-Si EDFAs with simultaneous improvement of PCE and NF by a combination of a single-pass low-noise stage with one or two double-pass high-efficiency stages. The best configuration yields high power (22dBm), low NF (5.5dB maximum over 1570-1620 nm band), and high efficiency (27% overall PCE after gain flattening).
Optical pulse shaping finds many important applications in the area of ultrafast photonics. For example, in ultrafast all-optical switching, temporal shaping of the control pulses can be used to create a wide flat-top switching window with sharp rise and fall times. Such switching windows are more jitter-tolerant than simple Gaussian windows, and can therefore achieve a lower bit-error rate. Previously reported pulse shaping methods using linearly chirped Fibre Bragg Gratings (FBGs) take advantage of the direct correspondence between the spatial distribution of the grating periods and the temporal distribution of the spectral contents of the grating impulse response (space-to-frequency-to-time mapping). However, they have two major drawbacks: first, they are only valid for high-dispersion gratings, and therefore are unsuitable for producing short pulses; second, due to the inherent impulse response assumption, the power conversion efficiency is very low since the grating bandwidth needs to be much smaller than that of the input pulse. The numerical conversion efficiency demonstrated for this method is about a few percent. We report a versatile technique for temporal pulse shaping using a simple linearly chirped FBG and an amplitude mask. Unlike previous pulse shaping methods, ours is also applicable for low-dispersion gratings with bandwidths comparable to that of the input pulse (i.e., taking into account of finite input pulse duration). The chirped grating is used to stretch the incoming pulses to the desirable temporal width, while the amplitude mask modifies the shape of the pulses. We developed a novel optimization algorithm to obtain an amplitude mask that significantly increases the conversion efficiency. Pulse shaping using linearly chirped FBGs in the low dispersion regime is simulated using two methods. For weak gratings, the direct relationship between the spatial grating profile and the grating impulse response was used in tandem with a forward-correction deconvolution algorithm to solve for the optimum amplitude mask. For strong gratings, an optimization algorithm based on the partial validity of space-time mapping, as well as the causal relationship between the reflected temporal response and the grating apodization profile was used to design the amplitude mask. We experimentally demonstrated the conversion of 1-ps transform-limited Gaussian pulses to 10-ps pulses with a target shape at a high conversion efficiency of ~20% (measured) using a 1.5-mm-long grating. The spectral width of the pulses is 3.5 nm, centered at 1.55μm. As the reflected pulse shape is controlled by the shape of the amplitude mask, our method can be easily adapted to produce any arbitrary temporal pulse shape by designing an appropriate amplitude mask. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of this technique of arbitrary pulse shaping using the combination of a linearly chirped fiber grating and an amplitude mask in the low-dispersion regime.
We report a unique low-cost technique for broadband gain and noise figure characterization of erbium-doped fiber amplifiers using an amplified-spontaneous-emission (ASE) source and a tunable filter with multiple steep slopes. The filter edge is tuned in steps of 10 pm and a series of output versus input power spectral density data points are taken at a fixed wavelength. Gain and noise figure of the amplifier are obtained by extracting the slope and intercept of output versus input power spectral density. The results obtained over a 20 dB total input power range are in good agreement (within ± 0.2 dB) with those obtained using conventional spectral-interpolation technique employing multiple DFB lasers at 100 GHz spacing over the C-band. The required filter depth is about 35 dB. Our method has several major advantages: (1) Low cost, as there is no need for multiple DFB laser sources or high-speed AOM modulators and RF drivers; (2) Immune to steady-state noise in the source; (3) Can be used to characterize amplifiers with fast dynamics as its accuracy is in principle not affected by the response time of the amplifying medium.
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