SearcharxivSearch

arXiv subjects

G. Patera

Publications and source records attributed to G. Patera.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

Bidimensional measurements of photon statistics within a multimodal temporal framework

Ultrafast imaging of photon statistics in two dimensions is a powerful tool for probing non-equilibrium and transient optical phenomena, yet it remains experimentally challenging due to the simultaneous need for high temporal resolution and statistical fidelity. In this work, we demonstrate spatially resolved single-shot measurements of photon number distributions using difference-frequency generation (DFG) in a nonlinear BBO crystal. We show that our platform can discriminate between coherent and thermal photon statistics across two spatial dimensions with picosecond resolution. At the same time, we find that the retrieved distributions deviate from the ideal ones, a consequence of vacuum contamination and the multimodal response of the amplifier. To explain this, we develop a temporal mode decomposition framework that captures the essential physics of signal amplification and fluorescence, and quantitatively reproduces the experimental findings. This establishes a robust approach for measuring two-dimensional photon statistics while clarifying the fundamental factors that limit the fidelity of such measurements.

quant-ph

Spatial localization and pattern formation in discrete optomechanical cavities and arrays

We investigate theoretically the generation of nonlinear dissipative structures in optomechanical (OM) systems containing discrete arrays of mechanical resonators. We consider both hybrid models in which the optical system is a continuous multimode field, as it would happen in an OM cavity containing an array of micro-mirrors, and also fully discrete models in which each mechanical resonator interacts with a single optical mode, making contact with Ludwig & Marquardt [Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 073603 (2013)]. Also, we study the connections between both types of models and continuous OM models. While all three types of models merge naturally in the limit of a large number of densely distributed mechanical resonators, we show that the spatial localization and the pattern formation found in continuous OM models can be still observed for a small number of mechanical elements, even in the presence of finite-size effects, which we discuss. This opens new venues for experimental approaches to the subject.

quant-ph

Thermal-difference states of light: quantum states of heralded photons

We introduce the thermal-difference states (TDS), a three-parameter family of single-mode non-Gaussian bosonic states whose density operator is a weighted difference of two thermal states. We show that the states of "heralded photons" generated via parametric down-conversion (PDC) are precisely those among the TDS that are nonclassical, meaning they have a negative $P$-function. The three parameters correspond in that context to the initial brightness of PDC and the transmittances, characterizing the linear loss in the signal and the idler channels. At low initial brightness and unit transmittances, the heralded photon state is known to be a single-photon state. We explore the influence of brightness and linear loss on the heralded state of the signal mode. In particular, we analyze the influence of the initial brightness and the loss on the state nonclassicality by computing several measures of nonclassicality, such as the negative volume of the Wigner function, the sum of quantum Fisher information for two quadratures, and the ordering sensitivity, introduced recently by us [Phys. Rev. Lett. 122, 080402 (2019)]. We argue finally that the TDS provide new benchmark states for the analysis of a variety of properties of single-mode bosonic states.

quant-ph

Quantum teleportation of qudits by means of generalized quasi-Bell states of light

Quantum superpositions of coherent states are produced both in microwave and optical domains, and are considered realizations of the famous "Schrödinger cat" state. The recent progress shows an increase in the number of components and the number of modes involved. Our work creates a theoretical framework for treatment of multicomponent two-mode Schrödinger cat states. We consider a class of single-mode states, which are superpositions of $N$ coherent states lying on a circle in the phase space. In this class we consider an orthonormal basis created by rotationally-invariant circular states (RICS). A two-mode extension of this basis is created by splitting a single-mode RICS on a balanced beam-splitter. We show that these states are generalizations of Bell states of two qubits to the case of $N$-level systems encoded into superpositions of coherent states on the circle, and we propose for them the name of generalized quasi-Bell states. We show that using a state of this class as a shared resource, one can teleport a superposition of coherent states on the circle (a qudit). Differently from some other existing protocols of quantum teleportation, the proposed protocol provides the unit fidelity for all input states of the qudit. We calculate the probability of success for this type of teleportation and show that it approaches unity for the average number of photons in one component above $N^2$. Thus, the teleportation protocol can be made unit-fidelity and deterministic at finite resources.

quant-ph

Quantum temporal imaging: application of a time lens to quantum optics

We consider application of a temporal imaging system, based on the sum-frequency generation, to a nonclassical, in particular, squeezed optical temporal waveform. We analyze the restrictions on the pump and the phase matching condition in the summing crystal, necessary for preserving the quantum features of the initial waveform. We show that modification of the notion of the field of view in the quantum case is necessary, and that the quantum field of view is much narrower than the classical one for the same temporal imaging system. These results are important for temporal stretching and compressing of squeezed fields, used in quantum-enhanced metrology and quantum communications.

quant-ph

Entanglement of quantum circular states of light

We present a general approach to calculating the entanglement of formation for superpositions of two-mode coherent states, placed equidistantly on a circle in the phase space. We show that in the particular case of rotationally-invariant circular states the Schmidt decomposition of two modes, and therefore the value of their entanglement, are given by analytical expressions. We analyse the dependence of the entanglement on the radius of the circle and number of components in the superposition. We also show that the set of rotationally-invariant circular states creates an orthonormal basis in the state space of the harmonic oscillator, and this basis is advantageous for representation of other circular states of light.

quant-ph