Ultrafast all-optical switching by single photons
An as yet outstanding goal in quantum optics is the realization of fast optical nonlinearities at the single-photon level. This would allow for the implementation of optical devices with new functionalities such as single-photon switches/transistors 1 , 2 or controlled-phase gates 3 . Although nonli...
Gespeichert in:
Veröffentlicht in: | Nature photonics 2012-09, Vol.6 (9), p.605-609 |
---|---|
Hauptverfasser: | , , , , , , |
Format: | Artikel |
Sprache: | eng |
Schlagworte: | |
Online-Zugang: | Volltext |
Tags: |
Tag hinzufügen
Keine Tags, Fügen Sie den ersten Tag hinzu!
|
Zusammenfassung: | An as yet outstanding goal in quantum optics is the realization of fast optical nonlinearities at the single-photon level. This would allow for the implementation of optical devices with new functionalities such as single-photon switches/transistors
1
,
2
or controlled-phase gates
3
. Although nonlinear optics effects at the single-emitter level have been demonstrated in a number of systems
4
,
5
,
6
,
7
,
8
,
9
,
10
,
11
,
12
,
13
, none of these experiments showed single-photon switching on ultrafast timescales. Here, we perform pulsed two-colour spectroscopy and demonstrate that, in a strongly coupled quantum dot–cavity system, the presence of a single photon on one of the fundamental polariton transitions can turn on light scattering on a transition from the first to the second Jaynes–Cummings manifold. The overall switching time of this single-photon all-optical switch
14
is ∼50 ps. In addition, we use the single-photon nonlinearity to implement a pulse correlator. Our quantum dot–cavity system could form the building block of future high-bandwidth photonic networks operating in the quantum regime
15
,
16
,
17
,
18
.
Researchers report the first demonstration of an ultrafast all-optical switch in the single-photon regime. The device, which consists of an InAs/GaAs quantum dot in a photonic crystal defect cavity, exhibits a coherent coupling constant of 141 meV and a quality factor of 25,000. The overall switching time is around 50 ps. |
---|---|
ISSN: | 1749-4885 1749-4893 |
DOI: | 10.1038/nphoton.2012.181 |