arXiv subjects

Falk Eilenberger

Publications and source records attributed to Falk Eilenberger.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2025

Generation of polarization-entangled Bell states in monolithic photonic waveguides by leveraging intrinsic crystal properties

Advanced photonic quantum technologies -- from quantum key distribution to quantum computing -- require on-chip sources of entangled photons that are both efficient and readily scalable. In this theoretical study, we demonstrate the generation of polarization-entangled Bell states in structurally simple waveguides by exploiting the intrinsic properties of nonlinear crystals. We thereby circumvent elaborate phase-matching strategies that commonly involve the spatial modulation of a waveguide's linear or nonlinear optical properties. We derive general criteria for the second-order susceptibility tensor that enable the generation of cross-polarized photon pairs via spontaneous parametric down-conversion in single-material waveguides. Based on these criteria, we systematically categorize all birefringent, non-centrosymmetric crystal classes in terms of their suitability. Using coupled mode theory, we then numerically analyze cuboid waveguides made from two materials that are highly relevant to integrated photonics: lithium niobate, a well-established platform, and barium titanate, an emerging alternative. We find that barium titanate consistently outperforms lithium niobate by providing a higher nonlinear efficiency and high concurrence over a significantly broader spectral range. These findings outline a practical route toward highly efficient, fabrication-friendly, and scalable sources of polarization-entangled photons for integrated quantum photonic circuits.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2025

Photoluminescence-Based Gas Sensing with MoS2 Monolayers

Two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are highly appealing for gas sensors, lab-on-a-chip devices and bio-sensing applications because of their strong light-matter interaction and high surface-to-volume ratio. The ability to grow these van der Waals materials on different substrates and waveguide geometries opens a horizon toward scalable on-chip photonic nanodevices. Here, we report on a versatile technique for real time remote optical gas sensing using two-dimensional TMDs. The adsorption of the gas molecules on the monolayer surface provides a gateway for gas sensing based on charge-transfer-induced photoluminescence variation. For gases that are weakly adsorbed on the surface of monolayer TMDs, purging the monolayers' surface by an inert gas like N2 can desorb gases from the monolayers at room temperature. We demonstrate CO, NO and NO2 detection by monitoring photoluminescence from semiconducting MoS2 monolayers grown on SiO2/Si chips at a level of 10 ppm with fast response time. Observations are supported by our density functional theory calculations, which predict a significant interaction between these gases and MoS2 monolayers. These findings may lead to advances in remote sensing, surface-sensitive bioanalytics and lab-on-a-chip sensors.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2025

Tuning relaxation and nonlinear upconversion of valley-exciton-polaritons in a monolayer semiconductor

Controlling exciton relaxation and energy conversion pathways via their coupling to photonic modes is a central task in cavity-mediated quantum materials research. In this context, the light-matter hybridization in optical cavities can lead to intriguing effects, such as modified carrier transport, enhancement of optical quantum yield, and control of chemical reaction pathways. Here, we investigate the impact of the strong light-matter coupling regime on energy conversion, both in relaxation and upconversion schemes, by utilizing a strongly charged MoSe2 monolayer embedded in a spectrally tunable open-access cavity. We find that the charge carrier gas yields a significantly modified photoluminescence response of cavity exciton-polaritons, dominated by an intra-cavity like pump scheme. In addition, upconversion luminescence emerges from a population transfer from fermionic trions to bosonic exciton-polaritons. Due to the availability of multiple optical modes in the tunable open cavity, it seamlessly meets the cavity-enhanced double resonance condition required for an efficient upconversion. The latter can be actively tuned via the cavity length in-situ, displaying nonlinear scaling in intensity and fingerprints of the valley polarization. This suggests mechanisms that include both trion-trion Auger scattering and phonon absorption as its underlying microscopic origin.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Room-temperature polariton condensate in a two-dimensional hybrid perovskite

Layered 2D halide perovskites are chemically synthesized realizations of quantum well stacks with giant exciton oscillator strengths, tunable emission spectra and very large exciton binding energies. While these features render 2D halide perovskites a promising platform for room-temperature polaritonics, bosonic condensation and polariton lasing in 2D perovskites have so far remained elusive at ambient conditions. Here, we demonstrate room-temperature cavity exciton-polariton condensation in mechanically exfoliated crystals of the 2D Ruddlesden-Popper iodide perovskite $(BA)_{2}(MA)_{2}Pb_{3}I_{10}$ in an open optical microcavity. We observe a polariton condensation threshold of $P_{th}=6.76 fJ$ per pulse and detect a strong non-linear response. Interferometric measurements confirm the spontaneous emergence of spatial coherence across the condensate with an associated first-order autocorrelation reaching $g^{(1)}\approx 0.6$. Our results lay the foundation for a new class of room-temperature polariton lasers based on 2D halide perovskites with great potential for hetero-integration with other van-der-Waals materials and combination with photonic crystals or waveguides.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Infrared magneto-polaritons in MoTe$_2$ mono- and bilayers

MoTe$_2$ monolayers and bilayers are unique within the family of van-der-Waals materials since they pave the way towards atomically thin infrared light-matter quantum interfaces, potentially reaching the important telecommunication windows. Here, we report emergent exciton-polaritons based on MoTe$_2$ monolayer and bilayer in a low-temperature open micro-cavity in a joint experiment-theory study. Our experiments clearly evidence both the enhanced oscillator strength and enhanced luminescence of MoTe$_2$ bilayers, signified by a 38 \% increase of the Rabi-splitting and a strongly enhanced relaxation of polaritons to low-energy states. The latter is distinct from polaritons in MoTe$_2$ monolayers, which feature a bottleneck-like relaxation inhibition. Both the polaritonic spin-valley locking in monolayers and the spin-layer locking in bilayers are revealed via the Zeeman effect, which we map and control via the light-matter composition of our polaritonic resonances.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Fabrication of low-loss lithium niobate on insulator waveguides on the wafer scale

We report on the wafer scale fabrication of single mode low-loss lithium niobate on insulator waveguides utilizing a chemically amplified resist and an optimized dry etching method. The fabricated single mode waveguides are free of residuals and re-deposition, with measured losses for straight waveguides around 2 dB/m (0.02 dB/cm). We present on a method offering advantages for large-scale production due to its cost-effectiveness, faster writing time, and simplified processes. This work holds promise for advancing integrated photonics and optical communication technologies.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Influence of resonant plasmonic nanoparticles on optically accessing the valley degree of freedom in 2D semiconductors

The valley degree of freedom is one of the most intriguing properties of atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides. Together with the possibility to address this degree of freedom by valley-contrasting optical selection rules, it has the potential to enable a completely new class of future electronic and optoelectronic devices. Resonant optical nanostructures emerge as promising tools for interacting with and controlling the valley degree of freedom at the nanoscale. However, a critical understanding gap remains in how nanostructures and their nearfields affect the circular polarization properties of valley-selective emission hindering further developments in this field. In order to address this issue, our study delves into the experimental investigation of a hybrid model system where valley-specific emission from a monolayer of molybdenum disulfide is interacting with a resonant plasmonic nanosphere. Contrary to the simple intuition suggesting that a centrosymmetric nanoresonator preserves the degree of circular polarization in the forward scattered farfield by angular momentum conservation, our cryogenic photoluminescence microscopy reveals that the light emitted from the nanoparticle position is largely unpolarized, i.e. we observe depolarization. We rigorously study the nature of this phenomenon numerically considering the monolayer-nanoparticle interaction at different levels including excitation and emission. In doing so, we find that the farfield degree of polarization strongly reduces in the hybrid system when including excitons emitting from outside of the system's symmetry point, which in combination with depolarisation at the excitation level causes the observed effect. Our results highlight the importance of considering spatially distributed emitters for precise predictions of polarization responses in these hybrid systems.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Topologically tunable polaritons based on two-dimensional crystals in a photonic lattice

Topological photonics is an emergent research discipline which interlinks fundamental aspects of photonics, information processing and solid-state physics. Exciton-polaritons are a specifically interesting platform to study topological phenomena, since the coherent light matter coupling enables new degrees of freedom such as tunable non-linearities, chiralities and dissipation. Room-temperature operation of such exciton-polaritons relies on materials comprising both, large exciton binding energies and oscillator strength. We harness widely spectrally tunable, room temperature exciton-polaritons based on a WS2 monolayer in an open optical cavity to realize a polariton potential landscape which emulates the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) Hamiltonian. It comprises a domain boundary hosting a topological, exponentially localized mode at the interface between two lattices characterized by different Zak-phases which features a spectral tunability over a range as large as 80 meV. Moreover, we utilize the unique tilt-tunability of our implementation, to transform the SSH-lattice into a Stark-ladder. This transformation couples the topologically protected defect mode to propagating lattice modes, and effectively changes the symmetry of the system. Furthermore, it allows us to directly quantify the Zak-phase difference $Δ_{Zak}=(1.13\pm 0.11)π$ between the two topological phases. Our work comprises an important step towards in-situ tuning topological lattices to control and guide light on non-linear chips.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Correlated magnetism of moiré exciton-polaritons on a triangular electron-spin lattice

We demonstrate evidence of correlated magnetism for exciton-polaritons in a MoSe$_{2}$/WS$_{2}$ moiré heterostructure with near-parallel alignment subject to electron doping. In our experiments, interactions between electrons and moiré excitons are controlled electrostatically by field-effect doping, and the polaritonic regime of strong light-matter coupling is established in an open cryogenic microcavity. Remarkably, at filling fractions around one electron per moiré cell, we observe drastic and nonlinear enhancement of the effective polariton Landé factor as a hallmark of correlated magnetism, which is cavity-controlled via resonance tuning of light and matter polariton constituents. Our work establishes moiré van der Waals heterostructures as an outstanding platform for studies of correlated phenomena in the presence of strong light-matter coupling and many-body phases of lattice-ordered excitons, charges and spins.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Engineering the impact of phonon dephasing on the coherence of a WSe$_{2}$ single-photon source via cavity quantum electrodynamics

Emitter dephasing is one of the key issues in the performance of solid-state single photon sources. Among the various sources of dephasing, acoustic phonons play a central role in adding decoherence to the single photon emission. Here, we demonstrate, that it is possible to tune and engineer the coherence of photons emitted from a single WSe$_2$ monolayer quantum dot via selectively coupling it to a spectral cavity resonance. We utilize an open cavity to demonstrate spectral enhancement, leveling, and suppression of the highly asymmetric phonon sideband, finding excellent agreement with a microscopic description of the exciton-phonon dephasing in a truly two-dimensional system. Moreover, the impact of cavity tuning on the dephasing is directly assessed via optical interferometry, which points out the capability to utilize light-matter coupling to steer and design dephasing and coherence of quantum emitters in atomically thin crystals.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Efficient Light Propagation Algorithm using Quantum Computers

Quantum algorithms can potentially overcome the boundary of computationally hard problems. One of the cornerstones in modern optics is the beam propagation algorithm, facilitating the calculation of how waves with a particular dispersion relation propagate in time and space. This algorithm solves the wave propagation equation by Fourier transformation, multiplication with a transfer function, and subsequent back transformation. This transfer function is determined from the respective dispersion relation, which can often be expanded as a polynomial. In the case of paraxial wave propagation in free space or picosecond pulse propagation, this expansion can be truncated after the quadratic term. The classical solution to the wave propagation requires $\mathcal{O}(N log N)$ computation steps, where $N$ is the number of points into which the wave function is discretized. Here, we show that the propagation can be performed as a quantum algorithm with $\mathcal{O}((log{}N)^2)$ single-controlled phase gates, indicating exponentially reduced computational complexity. We herein demonstrate this quantum beam propagation method (QBPM) and perform such propagation in both one- and two-dimensional systems for the double-slit experiment and Gaussian beam propagation. We highlight the importance of the selection of suitable observables to retain the quantum advantage in the face of the statistical nature of the quantum measurement process, which leads to sampling errors that do not exist in classical solutions.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Quantitative investigation of quantum emitter yield in drop-casted hexagonal boron nitride nanoflakes

Single photon emitters (SPEs) are a key component for their use as pure photon source in quantum technologies. In this study, we investigate the generation of SPEs from drop-casted hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) nanoflakes, examining the influence of the immersion solution and the source of hBN. We show that, depending on the utilized supplier and solution the number and quality of the emitters changes. We perform a comprehensive optical characterization of the deposited nanoflakes to assess the quality of the generated SPEs. We show quantitative data on SPE yields, highlighting significant variations among solvents and different sources of hBN. This holds particular significance for employing drop-casted nanoflakes as SPE sources in quantum communication, sensing, and imaging. Our method is easily expandable to all kinds of surfaces and can be done without requiring complex fabrication steps and equipment, thus providing the necessary scalability required for industrial quantum applications.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Organic room-temperature polariton condensate in a higher-order topological lattice

Organic molecule exciton-polaritons in photonic lattices are a versatile platform to emulate unconventional phases of matter at ambient conditions, including protected interface modes in topological insulators. Here, we investigate bosonic condensation in the most prototypical higher-order topological lattice: a 2D-version of the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model, supporting both 0D and 1D topological modes. We study fluorescent protein-filled, structured microcavities defining a staggered photonic trapping potential and observe the resulting first- and higher-order topologically protected modes via spatially resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy. We account for the spatial mode patterns by tight-binding calculations and theoretically characterize the topological invariants of the lattice. Under strong optical pumping, we observe bosonic condensation into the topological modes. Via interferometric measurements, we map the spatial first-order coherence in the protected 1D modes extending over 10 microns. Our findings pave the way towards organic on-chip polaritonics using higher-order topology as a tool for the generation of robustly confined polaritonic lasing states.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Revealing dark exciton signatures in polariton spectra of 2D materials

Dark excitons in transition metal dichalcogenides (TMD) have been so far neglected in the context of polariton physics due to their lack of oscillator strength. However, in tungsten-based TMDs, dark excitons are known to be the energetically lowest states and could thus provide important scattering partners for polaritons. In this joint theory-experiment work, we investigate the impact of the full exciton energy landscape on polariton absorption and reflectance. By changing the cavity detuning, we vary the polariton energy relative to the unaffected dark excitons in such a way that we open or close specific phonon-driven scattering channels. We demonstrate both in theory and experiment that this controlled switching of scattering channels manifests in characteristic sharp changes in optical spectra of polaritons. These spectral features can be exploited to extract the position of dark excitons. Our work suggests new possibilities for exploiting polaritons for fingerprinting nanomaterials via their unique exciton landscape.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2023

In-situ spontaneous emission control of MoSe$_2$-WSe$_2$ interlayer excitons with near-unity quantum yield

Optical resonators are a powerful platform to control the spontaneous emission dynamics of excitons in solid-state nanostructures. Here, we study a MoSe$_2$-WSe$_2$ van-der-Waals heterostructure that is integrated in a widely tunable open optical microcavity to gain insights into fundamental optical properties of the emergent interlayer charge-transfer excitons. First, we utilize an ultra-low quality factor open planar vertical cavity and investigate the modification of the excitonic lifetime as on- and off-resonant conditions are met with consecutive longitudinal modes. Time-resolved photoluminescence measurements reveal that the interlayer exciton lifetime can thus be periodically tuned with an amplitude of 110 ps. The resulting oscillations of the interlayer exciton lifetime allows us to extract a 0.5 ns free-space radiative lifetime and a quantum efficiency as high as 81 \%. We subsequently engineer the local density of optical states by introducing a spatially confined and fully spectrally tunable Tamm-plasmon resonance. The dramatic redistribution of the local optical modes in this setting allows us to encounter a profound inhibition of spontaneous emission of the interlayer excitons by a factor of 3.2. We expect that specifically engineering the inhibition of radiation from moiré excitons is a powerful tool to steer their thermalization, and eventually their condensation into coherent condensate phases.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2023

A Tunable Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Entangled Photon-Pair Source

Entangled photon-pair sources are at the core of quantum applications like quantum key distribution, sensing, and imaging. Operation in space-limited and adverse environments such as in satellite-based and mobile communication requires robust entanglement sources with minimal size and weight requirements. Here, we meet this challenge by realizing a cubic micrometer scale entangled photon-pair source in a 3R-stacked transition metal dichalcogenide crystal. Its crystal symmetry enables the generation of polarization-entangled Bell states without additional components and provides tunability by simple control of the pump polarization. Remarkably, generation rate and state tuning are decoupled, leading to equal generation efficiency and no loss of entanglement. Combining transition metal dichalcogenides with monolithic cavities and integrated photonic circuitry or using quasi-phasematching opens the gate towards ultrasmall and scalable quantum devices.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Discriminating mixed qubit states with collective measurements

It is a central fact in quantum mechanics that non-orthogonal states cannot be distinguished perfectly. This property ensures the security of quantum key distribution. It is therefore an important task in quantum communication to design and implement strategies to optimally distinguish quantum states. In general, when we have access to multiple copies of quantum states the optimal measurement will be a collective measurement. However, to date, collective measurements have not been used to enhance quantum state discrimination. One of the main reasons for this is the fact that, in the usual state discrimination setting with equal prior probabilities, at least three copies of a quantum state are required to be measured collectively to outperform separable measurements. This is very challenging experimentally. In this work, by considering unequal prior probabilities, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a protocol for distinguishing two copies of single qubit states using collective measurements which achieves a lower probability of error than can be achieved by any non-entangling measurement. We implement our measurements on an IBM Q System One device, a superconducting quantum processor. Additionally, we implemented collective measurements on three and four copies of the unknown state and found they performed poorly.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Testing the postulates of quantum mechanics with coherent states of light and homodyne detection

Quantum mechanics has withstood every experimental test thus far. However, it relies on ad-hoc postulates which require experimental verification. Over the past decade there has been a great deal of research testing these postulates, with numerous tests of Born's rule for determining probabilities and the complex nature of the Hilbert space being carried out. Although these tests are yet to reveal any significant deviation from textbook quantum theory, it remains important to conduct such tests in different configurations and using different quantum states. Here we perform the first such test using coherent states of light in a three-arm interferometer combined with homodyne detection. Our proposed configuration requires additional assumptions, but allows us to use quantum states which exist in a larger Hilbert space compared to previous tests. For testing Born's rule, we find that the third order interference is bounded to be $κ$ = 0.002 $\pm$ 0.004 and for testing whether quantum mechanics is complex or not we find a Peres parameter of F = 1.0000 $\pm$ 0.0003 (F = 1 corresponds to the expected complex quantum mechanics). We also use our experiment to test Glauber's theory of optical coherence.

quant-ph↗