CAREER: Control of Spatial Quantum Correlations for Enhanced Quantum Networks

在过去的几十年里，传统渠道的信息容量有了巨大的增长，这导致了一场“信息革命”，对信息的处理、存储和分发方式产生了深远的影响。在长距离量子网络中利用光的量子态的空间自由度的高维能力，使通过量子通道传输大量信息成为可能，从而带来一场类似于量子信息科学领域的革命。这个职业项目将研究在纠缠光束中使用空间量子关联，以提供对空间自由度的更多控制，目标是使其与长距离量子网络兼容。这将为在从长距离量子通信到量子成像的各种应用中使用这种自由度提供新的可能性。这项研究将与一个教育项目相结合，该项目旨在通过本科生积极参与研究和在本科教学实验室引入量子光学实验来发展他们解决问题的技能。它还将通过NSF RET计划的高中教师参与教学量子光学演示的开发，为普通公众提供教育外展机会。将积极努力让美洲原住民、拉美裔和妇女等代表性不足的群体参与研究和教育项目。空间自由度因其高维度而被认为有望在量子信息科学领域产生重大影响。然而，这一承诺在很大程度上没有兑现，因为在控制和操纵这一自由度方面存在的能力有限，而且它与长途网络不兼容。这个职业项目的目标是展示光的量子态的空间自由度与远程量子网络的兼容性。这将通过控制连续变量(CV)纠缠孪生光束中存在的空间量子关联的分布来实现，所述纠缠孪生光束是通过在Rb蒸气中的双波长组态的四波混频过程产生的。对CV的关注将使其有可能克服由于更常用的离散域方法的概率性质而产生的重要限制。具体地说，CV允许量子协议的确定性实现。这对于量子中继器等应用尤其重要，在这些应用中，事件的概率发生导致的低产率导致对设备的不切实际的限制。其中，这个职业项目将提供一个能够产生CV纠缠态的光的源，其空间量子关联的分布可以被工程设计。这将使空间自由度能够在量子信息应用中使用，如安全通信、信息处理和分布式量子计算。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Over the last decades there has been a tremendous increase in the information capacity of classical channels that has led to an "information revolution" that has had profound effects in how information is processed, stored, and distributed. The ability to use the higher dimensionality of the spatial degree of freedom of quantum states of light in a long-distance quantum network can bring about an analogous revolution to the field of quantum information science by making it possible to transmit large amounts of information through a quantum channel. This CAREER project will study the use of spatial quantum correlations in entangled beams of light to provide more control over the spatial degree of freedom with the goal of making it compatible with long-distance quantum networks. This will enable new possibilities for the use of this degree of freedom in applications that range from long-distance quantum communications to quantum imaging. The research will be integrated with an educational program that seeks to develop the problem-solving skills of the undergraduate students through their active participation in research and the introduction of quantum optics experiments in the undergraduate teaching laboratories. It will also provide educational outreach opportunities for the general public through the involvement of high-school teachers from the NSF RET program in the development of didactical quantum optics demonstrations. Active efforts will be made to involve underrepresented groups, such as Native Americans, Hispanics, and women, in the research and educational programs.The spatial degree of freedom has been recognized to hold the promise for significant impact in the field of quantum information science due to its large dimensionality. However, this promise has largely been unfulfilled due to the limited capabilities that exist in terms of the control and manipulation of this degree of freedom and its incompatibility with long-distance networks. The goal of this CAREER project is to demonstrate the compatibility of the spatial degree of freedom of quantum states of light with long-distance quantum networks. This will be done through the control of the distribution of the spatial quantum correlations present in continuous-variable (CV) entangled twin beams generated through a four-wave mixing process in a double-lambda configuration in rubidium vapor. The focus on CVs will make it possible to overcome important limitations that result from the probabilistic nature of the more commonly used discrete domain approach. In particular, CVs allow for a deterministic implementation of quantum protocols. This is particularly important for applications, such as quantum repeaters, in which the low yield rate that results from the probabilistic occurrence of events leads to impractical constraints on the apparatus. Among other things, this CAREER project will provide a source capable of generating CV entangled states of light whose distribution of spatial quantum correlations can be engineered. This will enable the use of the spatial degree of freedom in quantum information applications such as secure communications, information processing, and distributed quantum computing.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.