Optical source for the generation of pulsed quantum frequency combs (Phase I)

目前的“创意创新”申请提议建立一个专门设计用于产生脉冲量子频率梳和单频模式光子的光源原型。实际上，这种非经典光源源于一种新的主动锁模激光方案。锁模激光器，发射脉冲相干光，构成了从电信、光谱学、计量学到量子光学等各种应用的基础。虽然许多不同的锁模技术已经被证明用于脉冲量子频率梳的产生，但它们都没有表现出通用或节能的行为。我们的发明基于腔内主动锁模激励方案，将通过在量子密钥分发或量子计算系统中实现，使量子技术（如安全通信）的低成本和可访问的进步成为可能。该源代表了实现紧凑、稳定、节能和通用脉冲量子频率梳源的重要一步，这对于大规模实施至关重要。在项目的时间框架内，我们的工作将分配如下：（i)主动锁模激光方案的建模，以允许使用大型微腔，（ii）激光性能的实验实施和测量，（iii）光子对产生速率的可调性演示，以及iv）在量子密钥分发实验中实施。考虑到光子学行业的标准，并提出一种适用于量子密码学和量子计算的通用设备，将开发出这样的策略。由于这一“创意到创新”的应用，以及量子市场的快速发展表明科学界为将量子应用推向市场所做的巨大努力，我们打算推动我们发明的发展，以增加我们知识产权的价值，并扩大对我们技术感兴趣的潜在客户的数量。

The present Idea to Innovation application proposes to build the prototype of an optical source specifically designed for the generation of pulsed quantum frequency combs and single-frequency-mode photons. Practically, such a non-classical source of light stems from a new active mode-locked laser scheme. Mode-locked lasers, emitting pulsed coherent light, form the foundation for various applications ranging from telecommunications, spectroscopy, metrology, to quantum optics. While many different mode-locking techniques have been demonstrated for the generation of pulsed quantum frequency combs, none of them has either exhibited a versatile or power-efficient behavior. Our invention, based on an intra-cavity actively mode-locked excitation scheme, will enable low-cost and accessible advances for quantum technologies, such as secure communications, through an implementation in Quantum Key Distribution or quantum computation systems. The source represents a significant step towards the realization of compact, stable, energy efficient and versatile sources of pulsed quantum frequency combs, crucial for a large-scale implementation. During the timeframe of the project, our efforts will be distributed as follows: (i) modelling of the actively mode-locked laser scheme, to allow the use of a large type of micro-cavities, (ii) experimental implementation and measurement of the laser performances, (iii) demonstration of the tunability of the photon pair generation rate, and iv) implementation in a Quantum Key Distribution experiment. Such a strategy will be developed by taking into account the standards of the photonics industry and by proposing a versatile equipment adapted to quantum cryptography but also quantum computation. Thanks to this Idea to Innovation application, and stemming from the fast evolution of the quantum market which demonstrates the great efforts made by the scientific community to bring quantum applications to the market, we intend to push forward the development of our invention with the aim of increasing the value of our intellectual property and enlarge the number of potential customers interested in our technology.