Connectorizing Integrated Quantum Photonics Devices

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Quantum information science is the discipline that studies the information present in quantum systems. Numerous new technological applications in communication and computing can be unlocked thanks to purely quantum phenomena. As opposed to classical information bits, which can be either 0s and 1s, the quantum bits (or qubits), are associated to the state of quantum objects. Because of the quantum superposition principle, the qubits can be 0s, 1s, or coherent superposition of both, thus giving access to an extraordinarily richer alphabet. Quantum information science also exploits quantum entanglement, i.e. strong correlation between quantum objects, as a resource for fast and secure quantum communication in the development of the so-called quantum networks. Thanks to the no-cloning theorem, quantum networks can detect whether shared cryptographic keys have been intercepted and/or compromised by the presence of an eavesdropper. At the same time, they prove prone to photonic loss because the no-cloning theorem forbids amplification of quantum states. Single- and two-photon sources and quantum memories are key components of quantum networks, as they allow the generation of quantum states encoded on photons and their long-term storage. The implementation of such devices on small chips has the potential to replicate the revolution of modern electronic miniaturization. The integration of quantum devices can in fact enhance the light-matter interaction and provide high-level scalability and intrinsic mechanical stability. However, current realizations are limited either by the low extraction/insertion efficiencies of the generated/stored photons in free-space or by the complexity of the setups which hinders the scalability potential.This proposal tackles the challenge of implementing **efficient and robust interconnects** between integrated quantum photonics devices and optical fibres with the aims of 1) **minimizing the optical losses** throughout the networks and 2) **making them scalable beyond simple proof-of-principle demonstrations**. The effort involves two quantum technology companies, Duality Quantum Photonics (DQP, UK) and OptoElectronic Component (OEC, Canada) and two research groups at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS, Canada) and Heriot-Watt University (HWU, UK). Such consortium gathers world-leading partners in integrated quantum photonics, with widely recognized expertise in all steps of the development: design and fabrication of integrated circuits and mode conversion structures (DQP), implementation of integrated quantum devices, as single photon sources (HWU), sources of photonic entanglement (INRS), and quantum memories (HWU), and efficient detection of quantum states of light (OEC). The project outcomes will provide a significant contribution towards the development of quantum secure communication networks.