RAISE-EQuIP: Integrated Silicon Photonics Platforms for Scalable Quantum Systems

量子信息处理（QIP）依赖于利用光和物质的量子特性对信息进行提取、处理、操纵以及传输和检测。QIP预计将用于保护和扩大多方量子计算，以解决目前计算机无法解决的计算问题，例如用于材料设计和药物发现的大规模分子模拟；或者它可以连接分布式量子传感器网络，用于超精密测量，应用于生物成像、重力测量和位置导航定时。在QIP的总体前景中，量子通信扮演着特殊的角色，因为它可以用来实现安全的数据传输网络，利用量子密码学的概念，其中传输的安全性由量子物理的基本定律保证。在过去的十年中，与量子ip的产生、操作、存储、传播和检测相关的科学技术取得了巨大的进步。大部分进展都集中在开发满足单光子水平QIP相当严格要求的单个器件组件上。将这些单独的组件集成到一个完整的量子通信系统中并优化操作需要跨学科的方法。超越单个分立组件的移动需要一种新的范例，将各种组件集成到单个芯片上。本研究的主要愿景是通过实现基于硅的集成平台和探索量子网络中量子设备的相互作用来推动量子技术的工程前沿。除了新的科学技术的进步，一个主要的成果将是本科生和研究生在跨学科的环境中接触到广泛的主题。这种广泛的教学/研究经验是培养未来高技能劳动力的平台。这个变革性的项目将集成用于量子信息处理的单光子和纠缠光子的生成、操作、传播和检测的新设备，用于硅光子平台，可用于实现大规模量子通信网络。这是一个高度跨学科的项目，汇集了材料科学和工程方面的专业知识；半导体制造、加工及器件；超导器件物理；经典非线性光学和量子光学；为解决光通信方面的技术挑战，开发和实现了可扩展的集成量子通信平台。研究内容包括单光子和纠缠光子对源、单光子探测器和集成通道的设计和制造，以及表征光子态量子特性的实验，以便在可行的量子通信协议中实现。所提出的集成平台在量子通信系统网络以及大规模系统的开发和实现中具有很大的应用前景。将在拟议的研究中使用的单个组件和设备是相当新颖的，并且可以使用标准半导体器件处理技术进行可扩展集成。超导量子点发光二极管，其工作原理是基于半导体中的库珀对带间跃迁，将发展到产生单光子态和对光子态。对于单光子探测，将开发行波超导纳米条纹单光子探测器，并将其集成到器件平台中。按需电驱动光子源以及单光子探测器将与无源氮化硅波导一起使用，所有这些都集成在硅衬底上，用于研究量子信息处理实现的各种场景，例如路径纠缠光子的表征，多量子位纠缠，量子态断层扫描，并且可能作为量子通信协议的概念验证。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Quantum information processing (QIP) relies on the extraction, processing and manipulation, as well as transmission and detection of information by exploiting quantum properties of light and matter. QIP is expected to be used to secure and scale-up multiparty quantum computations to tackle computational problems that currently remain outside the reach of computers, such as large-scale molecular simulations for materials design and drug discovery; or it can connect a network of distributed quantum sensors for ultraprecise measurements with applications to biological imaging, gravitometry, and position navigation-timing. In a general landscape of QIP, quantum communications plays a special role, because it can be used to implement a secure data transmission network, leveraging the concept of quantum cryptography, where the security of transmission is guaranteed by the basic laws of quantum physics. Over the last decade, there has been tremendous progress in science and technology related to the generation, manipulation, storage, propagation, and detection of photons for QIP. Much of this progress has been focused on developing individual device components that satisfy the rather stringent requirements of QIP at the single-photon level. Integrating these individual components into a complete quantum-communication system with optimized operation requires an interdisciplinary approach. The move beyond individual discrete components necessitates a new paradigm that will integrate various components on a single chip. The main vision of this research is to push the frontiers of engineering in quantum technologies by implementing a silicon-based integrated platform and exploring the interactions of quantum devices in a quantum network. In addition to the advancement of the new science and technology, a major outcome will be the exposure of undergraduate and graduate students working on this project to a broad range of topics in an interdisciplinary environment. This broad teaching/research experience is a platform to train the highly skilled workforce of the future.This transformative project will integrate novel devices for the generation, manipulation, propagation, and detection of single and entangled photons for quantum information processing in a silicon photonics platform that can be used to implement a large-scale quantum communication network. This is a highly interdisciplinary project that brings together expertise in materials science and engineering; semiconductor fabrication, processing, and devices; superconducting device physics; classical nonlinear and quantum optics; and optical communications to solve technical challenges for the development and realization of a scalable integrated quantum communication platform. The research covers both design and fabrication of single-photon and entangled photon pair sources, single-photon detectors, and integrated channels to manipulate photons, as well as experiments to characterize the quantum nature of the photonic states for implementation in viable quantum communication protocols. The proposed integrated platform is very promising for implementation in a quantum communication system network, as well as in development and realization of large-scale systems. The individual components and devices that will be used in the proposed research are quite novel and amenable to scalable integration using standard semiconductor device processing technologies. Superconducting quantum-dot light-emitting diodes, whose operation is based on Cooper-pair interband transition in a semiconductor, will be developed to generate single- and pair-photon states. For single-photon detection, traveling-wave superconducting nanostripe single-photon detectors will be developed and integrated in the device platform. The on-demand electrically driven photon sources, as well as single-photon detectors, will be used along with passive silicon nitride waveguides, all integrated on the silicon substrate, to study various scenarios for quantum information processing implementations, such as characterization of path-entangled photons, multi-qubit entanglement, quantum state tomography, and, potentially, as a proof-of-concept for quantum communication protocols.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.