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arXiv · 2610.23575

Noise suppression of quantum frequency conversion in thin-film lithium niobate waveguides via adapted poling

Ian Briggs·Pao-Kang Chen·Jiaqi Huang·Linran Fan
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Abstract

Quantum frequency conversion (QFC) enables optical interfaces between dissimilar quantum systems, but suppressing noise while maintaining high conversion efficiency remains challenging. Here, we demonstrate that adapted poling in thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) waveguides reduces the pump-power requirement while shifting the dominant noise mechanism and its power scaling. In 2-cm-long waveguides, adapted poling enables maximum conversion efficiency at an on-chip pump power of $19\pm0.8$~mW, reducing the required pump power by 8~dB and the total conversion noise by 14~dB relative to conventional periodic poling at their respective maximum-conversion operating points. Controlled measurements with different pump conditions and device configurations reveal a transition from predominantly quadratic noise scaling in periodically poled devices to predominantly linear scaling in adapted-poling devices. This transition accompanies a shift from noise dominated by cascaded second-harmonic generation and Stokes spontaneous Raman scattering to direct anti-Stokes spontaneous Raman scattering. These results establish adapted poling as an effective approach to suppressing nonlinear noise, enabling low-noise integrated frequency converters for quantum networks.

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Ian Briggs, Pao-Kang Chen, Jiaqi Huang, Linran Fan. 2026-10-16. Noise suppression of quantum frequency conversion in thin-film lithium niobate waveguides via adapted poling. https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.23575

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