Tony D. Roberts

Spontaneous parametric down-conversion in periodically poled KTP waveguides and bulk crystals

We present a theoretical and experimental comparison of spontaneous parametric down-conversion in periodically poled waveguides and bulk KTP crystals. We measured a waveguide pair generation rate of 2.9.10(6) pairs/s per mWof pump in a 1-nm band: more than 50 times higher than the bulk crystal generation rate.

High performance photon-pair source based on a fiber-coupled periodically poled KTiOPO4 waveguide.

We demonstrate efficient generation of photon pairs at 1316 nm in a fiber-coupled type-II phase-matched Rb-indiffused waveguide in periodically poled KTiOPO(4). The integrated waveguide source has a pair production rate of 2 x 10(7)/s/mW in a 1.08-nm bandwidth, in good agreement with a theoretical model that takes into account the transversal momentum imparted on the phase matching function by the waveguide. We achieve a Hong-Ou-Mandel quantum-interference visibility of 98.2% after subtraction of accidental coincidences, representing the highest reported value for a waveguide-based photon-pair source.

High-quality fiber-optic polarization entanglement distribution at 1.3 μm telecom wavelength

We demonstrate high-quality distribution of 1.3 microm polarization-entangled photons generated from a fiber-coupled periodically poled KTiOPO(4) waveguide over 200 m fiber-optic cables. Time-multiplexed measurements with a 19% efficient superconducting nanowire single-photon detector at the remote location show a detected flux of 5.8 pairs/s at a pump power of 25 microW and an average two-photon quantum-interference visibility of 97.7% without subtraction of accidentals.

Guided wave optics in periodically poled KTP: quadratic nonlinearity and prospects for attosecond jitter characterization

For the first time to our knowledge, continuous nonsegmented channel waveguides in periodically poled KTiOPO(4) with guided orthogonal polarizations are used to demonstrate type II background-free second harmonic generation in the telecom band with 1.6%/(W cm(2)) normalized conversion efficiency. This constitutes a 90-fold improvement in aggregate conversion efficiency over its free space counterpart. Simulations show that the guided wave device should enable the measurement of timing fluctuations of optical pulse trains at the attosecond level in an optical cross correlation scheme.

Portable ultrafast blue light sources designed with frequency doubling in KTP and KNbO/sub 3/

We demonstrate an effective means of achieving compact, truly portable, and entirely self-contained ultrafast blue light sources. Using a variety of nonlinear media to achieve simple second-harmonic generation of a femtosecond Cr:LiSAF laser, we investigate the relative merits of aperiodically poled bulk and waveguide nonlinear crystals in comparison to periodically poled structures. Such a compact and convenient source of ultrashort laser pulses in the blue spectral region could be of great interest for on-site applications spanning a host of disciplines, such as biomedical imaging, optical micromanipulation, and high-resolution spectroscopy.

Broadband amplitude squeezing in a periodically poled KTiOPO4 waveguide.

We generated -2.2 dB of broadband amplitude squeezing at 1064 nm in a periodically poled KTiOPO4 (PPKTP) waveguide by coupling of the fundamental and second-harmonic cw fields. This is the largest amount of squeezing obtained to date in a KTP waveguide, limited by propagation losses. This result paves the way for further improvements by use of lower-loss buried ion-exchanged waveguides.

Generation of 250 mW narrowband pulsed ultraviolet light by frequency quadrupling of an amplified erbium-doped fiber laser

We demonstrate a high-power, narrowband pulsed source at 390 nm by two stages of frequency doubling in periodically poled MgO:LiNbO(3) and periodically poled KTiOPO(4) of an amplified, passively mode-locked fiber laser. With a frequency quadrupling efficiency of 5.5% and a 0.1 nm bandwidth, the 250 mW ultraviolet source is a suitable compact pump source for many entanglement-based quantum information processing tasks.

Fiber-coupled balanced optical cross-correlator using PPKTP waveguides

We present a fiber-coupled balanced optical cross-correlator using waveguides in periodically-poled KTiOPO(4) (PPKTP). The normalized conversion efficiency of the waveguide device is measured to be η(0) = 1.02% / [W · cm(2)], which agrees well with theory and simulation. This result represents an expected improvement of a factor of 20 over previous bulk-optic devices. The sensitivity of the cross-correlator is characterized and shown to be comparable to the free-space bulk-optic version, with the potential for significant performance enhancements in the future.

Compact sources of correlated and entangled photons

We present two experiments geared toward the realization of a robust and intense source of polarization-entangled photons. First, we describe a novel source of polarization-entangled pairs that uses periodically-poled potassium titanyl phosphate (PPKTP) and an interferometer based on polarization beam displacers. The source emits an intense flux of high-quality single-mode entangled photons and is stable, robust, and easy to align. Second, we report on sources of correlated photons generated in PPKTP waveguides. Waveguide sources of correlated pairs have been shown to generate high fluxes of pairs: we theoretically and experimentally investigate spontaneous parametric down-conversion generation of photon pairs in waveguides at different wavelengths.

A multi-channel tunable source for atomic sensors

We have designed and completed initial testing on a laser source suitable for atomic interferometry from compact, robust, integrated components. Our design is enabled by capitalizing on robust, well-commercialized, low-noise telecom components with high reliability and declining costs which will help to drive the widespread deployment of this system. The key innovation is the combination of current telecom-based fiber laser and modulator technology with periodicallypoled waveguide technology to produce tunable laser light at rubidium D1 and D2 wavelengths (and expandable to other alkalis) using second harmonic generation (SHG). Unlike direct-diode sources, this source is immune to feedback at the Rb line eliminating the need for bulky high-power isolators in the system. In addition, the source has GHz-level frequency agility and in our experiments was found to only be limited by the agility of our RF generator. As a proof-of principle, the source was scanned through the Doppler-broadened Rb D2 absorption line. With this technology, multiple channels can be independently tuned to produce the fields needed for addressing atomic states in atom interferometers and clocks. Thus, this technology could be useful in the development cold-atom inertial sensors and gyroscopes.