MRI: Acquisition of a Characterization Station for Next Generation Multifunctional Quantum Devices and Systems

量子技术有望使人类的计算、通信和传感能力发生突然变化（或量子飞跃）。 扩大量子系统的规模，或者换句话说，增加计算空间、通信距离和测量灵敏度，是实际应用成功的关键。将量子光子组件集成到单一平台上，可显着减小尺寸、重量、功耗和成本 (SWaP-C)，同时增强功率和相位稳定性、可扩展性和可制造性。光子学被视为量子应用的支持技术。光子集成电路（PIC）技术具有多种关键优势，并为量子实验提供了多功能测试平台，并为基于测量的量子计算、高维纠缠、量子通信、量子信息处理和量子机器学习提供了资源。许多应用，例如量子模拟器、机器学习和基于图形的计算，都可以通过量子光子学自然实现。此外，光子学作为一种可以测试拓扑现象理论预测的工具，导致了物质拓扑相的快速发展。拓扑还通过实现鲁棒控制（即使对于不完美的设备）以及促进电信、计量、传感和处理应用的实用设备来促进光子学的发展。 随着量子设备和系统从理论转向实践，研究机构和私营部门的兴趣日益浓厚，熟练的科学家和工程师的短缺已经成为问题。 因此，不难过分强调这些技术的扎实背景和未来理工科毕业生的实践经验的重要性。 技术创新在当地和全球经济中的作用日益增强，以及技术先进国家之间日益激烈的竞争，使得量子设备和系统领域的学生培训对 21 世纪的美国至关重要。 该 MRI 的目标是获得独特的最先进的自动光子对准/探针台，具有高亮度光子对源和双通道超低噪声光子计数器，可实现量子器件和系统的表征。 它将实现多端口量子器件和系统的光学和电子测量，从而满足可靠和可重复测量的需求，同时最大限度地减少与对准相关的损失，这在量子实验中至关重要。 量子器件在开发早期阶段的表征对于其进一步优化至关重要，因为它提供了允许器件改进的重要反馈。该表征站将为 CCNY 的教师、研究人员和学生提供独特的测量功能，并将补充 CCNY 社区可用的制造设施以及建模和仿真功能。 该项目将为 CCNY 多元化的研究生和本科生群体提供培训机会，其中许多学生来自代表性不足的群体。 学生将获得集成量子光子器件的设计、制造、测试和表征的整个范围的经验。我们预计该设施将吸引 CCNY 以外的研究人员，并将促进进一步的合作，从而促进参与研究人员之间更多的科学互动和思想交流。最后，中小型企业可以通过访问提议的系统并通过协作努力，从其产品的开发中受益。 这将有助于产生重要的专业知识，并在 CCNY 之间进行知识转移，培训学生，开发新的科学知识和产品，从而有利于美国经济。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力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 technology is poised to enable an abrupt change (or a quantum leap) in human capability for computing, communications, and sensing. Scaling up quantum systems, or in other words, increasing computational space, communication distance and measurement sensitivity, is the key for the success of real applications. Integrating quantum photonic components onto a single platform, significantly reduces the size, weight, power, and cost (SWaP-C), while simultaneously enhancing the power and phase stability, scalability, and manufacturability. Photonics is viewed as an enabling technology for quantum applications. Photonic integrated circuits (PICs) technology offers several critical advantages and provides a versatile testbed for quantum experiments and resources for measurement-based quantum computing, high-dimensional entanglement, quantum communications, quantum information processing and quantum machine learning. Many applications, such as quantum simulators, machine learning, and graph-based computation have a natural implementation by quantum photonics. Furthermore, photonics serves as a tool by which theoretical predictions of topological phenomena can be tested, which has led to the rapid development of topological phases of matter. Topology has also contributed to the growth of photonics by enabling its robust control, even for imperfect devices, and by promoting practical devices for applications in telecommunications, metrology, sensing and processing. As quantum devices and systems are transitioning from theory to practice, and there is a growing interest from research institutions and the private sector, the shortage of skilled scientist and engineers has been identified. Hence, it is not difficult to overemphasize the importance of a solid background in these technologies and the hands-on experience of future science and engineering graduates. An increasing role of technological innovations in local and global economies, and growing competition among technologically advanced nations, makes student training in quantum devices and systems field vital for the US in 21st century. The objective of this MRI is the acquisition of a unique state-of-the-art automated photonics alignment/probe station with a high brightness Photon-Pair source and a dual channel Ultra-low-noise Photon Counter that will enable the characterization of quantum devices and systems. It will enable optical and electronic measurements of multiport quantum devices and systems, thus, addressing the needs for reliable and repeatable measurements, while at the same time minimizing alignment related losses, which are of critical importance in quantum experiments. The characterization of quantum devices in the early stage of the development is critical for their further optimization, as it provides important feedback that allow for device improvements. The characterization station will enable unique measurement capabilities to faculty, researchers, and students at CCNY and will complement fabrication facilities and modeling and simulation capabilities available to the CCNY community. The project will provide opportunities for training to the diverse graduate and undergraduate student body at CCNY, where many of the students are from underrepresented groups. The students will gain experience on the entire spectrum of design-fabrication-testing and characterization of integrated quantum photonic devices. We anticipate that the facility will attract researchers beyond CCNY and will foster further collaborations, which can lead to more scientific interaction and exchange of ideas among the participating researchers. Finally, small/medium size businesses may benefit in the development of their products, by getting access to the proposed system and through collaborative efforts. This will enable the generation of important knowhow and transfer of knowledge from/to CCNY, training of students and development of new scientific knowledge and products that will benefit the US economy.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.