arXiv subjects

Jiefei Zhang

Publications and source records attributed to Jiefei Zhang.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Optical decoherence in Er$^{3+}$-doped CeO$_2$ spin qubit platforms

Erbium ions (Er$^{3+}$) in cerium dioxide (CeO$_2$) represent a promising spin-photon interface for quantum communication, but the mechanisms limiting their optical coherence remain poorly understood. Using periodic hybrid density functional theory calculations with finite-size corrections, we identify Ce$^{3+}$ polarons and their complexes with oxygen vacancies and Er$^{3+}$ dopants as likely sources of optical decoherence. These defects exhibit finite photoionization cross-sections at 0.8 eV, coinciding with both the laser excitation energy used experimentally and the emission energy of Er$^{3+}$. This resonance enables photoionization of the polarons and photoluminescence quenching of Er$^{3+}$, leading to the broadening of optical linewidths, shortening of excited-state lifetimes, and introduction of charge noise. Our concentration-dependent photocurrent measurements in Er$^{3+}$-doped CeO$_2$ films under 0.8 eV illumination validate the predicted decoherence pathway. Our combined computational and experimental results identify a concrete defect-engineering target for improving the Er$^{3+}$-doped CeO$_2$ platform, and point to a decoherence mechanism likely relevant to other Er$^{3+}$-doped multivalent-oxide quantum platforms.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2026

Telecom quantum memory over one microsecond in nanophotonic lithium niobate

Nanophotonic quantum memory is a vital component for scalable quantum information processing for quantum computing, networking, and sensing applications. We store single-photon-level telecom-band optical pulses for more than a microsecond using an atomic frequency comb in erbium-doped thin-film lithium niobate, well beyond what is practically feasible via propagation in even the best nanophotonic devices due to propagation losses. We verify the quantum nature of this storage by demonstrating the phase coherence and sub-single-photon noise upon retrieval. We also show the flexibility of our platform by storing up to 20 temporal modes and demonstrating an acceptance bandwidth up to 2.2 GHz. These results establish erbium-doped thin-film lithium niobate as a practical platform for on-chip quantum memory at telecom wavelengths, a key missing element for photonic quantum computing and quantum networking.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2026

BLM-Guard: Explainable Multimodal Ad Moderation with Chain-of-Thought and Policy-Aligned Rewards

Short-video platforms now host vast multimodal ads whose deceptive visuals, speech and subtitles demand finer-grained, policy-driven moderation than community safety filters. We present BLM-Guard, a content-audit framework for commercial ads that fuses Chain-of-Thought reasoning with rule-based policy principles and a critic-guided reward. A rule-driven ICoT data-synthesis pipeline jump-starts training by generating structured scene descriptions, reasoning chains and labels, cutting annotation costs. Reinforcement learning then refines the model using a composite reward balancing causal coherence with policy adherence. A multitask architecture models intra-modal manipulations (e.g., exaggerated imagery) and cross-modal mismatches (e.g., subtitle-speech drift), boosting robustness. Experiments on real short-video ads show BLM-Guard surpasses strong baselines in accuracy, consistency and generalization.

cs.CV↗

arXiv2025

Microstructural and preliminary optical and microwave characterization of erbium doped CaMoO$_4$ thin films

This work explores erbium-doped calcium molybdate (CaMoO$_4$) thin films grown on silicon and yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) substrates, as a potential solid state system for C-band (utilizing the $\sim$1.5 $\mu$m Er$^{3+}$ 4f-4f transition) quantum emitters for quantum network applications. Through molecular beam epitaxial growth experiments and electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and reflection electron diffraction studies, we identify an incorporation limited deposition regime that enables a 1:1 Ca:Mo ratio in the growing film leading to single phase CaMoO$_4$ formation that can be in-situ doped with Er (typically 2-100 ppm). We further show that growth on silicon substrates is single phase but polycrystalline in morphology; while growth on YSZ substrates leads to high-quality epitaxial single crystalline CaMoO$_4$ films. We perform preliminary optical and microwave characterization on the suspected $Y_1 - Z_1$ transition of 2 ppm, 200 nm epitaxial CaMoO$_4$ annealed thin films and extract an optical inhomogeneous linewidth of 9.1(1) GHz, an optical excited state lifetime of 6.7(2) ms, a spectral diffusion-limited homogeneous linewidth of 6.7(4) MHz, and an EPR linewidth of 1.10(2) GHz.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Spin decoherence dynamics of Er$^{3+}$ in CeO$_2$ film

Developing telecom-compatible spin-photon interfaces is essential towards scalable quantum networks. Erbium ions (Er$^{3+}$) exhibit a unique combination of a telecom (1.5 $\mu$m) optical transition and an effective spin-$1/2$ ground state, but identifying a host that enables heterogeneous device integration while preserving long optical and spin coherence remains an open challenge. We explore a new platform of Er$^{3+}$:CeO$_2$ films on silicon, offering low nuclear spin density and the potential for on-chip integration. We demonstrate a 38.8 $\mu$s spin coherence, which can be extended to 176.4\nobreakspace $\mu$s with dynamical decoupling. Pairing experiments with cluster correlation expansion calculations, we identify spectral diffusion-induced Er$^{3+}$ spin flips as the dominant decoherence mechanism and provide pathways to millisecond-scale coherence.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Superradiance Enhanced Light-Matter Interaction in Spatially Ordered Shape and Volume Controlled Single Quantum Dots: Enabling On-Chip Photonic Networks

On-chip photonic networks require adequately spatially ordered matter-photon interconversion qubit sources with emission figures-of-merit exceeding the requirements that would enable the desired functional response of the network. The mesa-top single quantum dots (MTSQDs) have recently been demonstrated to meet these requirements. The substrate-encoded size-reducing epitaxy (SESRE) approach underpinning the realization of these unique quantum emitters allows control on the shape, size, and strain (lattice-matched or mismatched) of these epitaxial single quantum dots. We have exploited this unique feature of the MTSQDs to reproducibly create arrays of quantum dots that exhibit single photon superradiance, a characteristic of the SESRE-enabled delicate balance between the confinement pontential volume, depth, the resulting exciton binding energy, and the degree of confinement of the center of mass (CM) motion of the exciton. Scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) studies reveal the structural (atomic scale) and chemical (nm scale) nature of the material region defining the notion of the shape and volume (here large) of the electron confinement region (i.e. the QD). In the exciton's weake CM confinement regime, owing to its coherent sampling of the large volume, enhancement of the MTSQD oscillator strength to ~30 is demonstrated. Theoretical modelling with input from the STEM finding provide corroboration for single photon superradiance causing enhancement of the oscillator strength by ~2.5 to 3. Our findings allow fabricating and studying interconnected networks enabled by the unique matter qubit-light qubit interconversion units that can be realized for lattice matched and mismatched material combinations covering UV to midinfrared wavelength range.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Valley Splitting Correlations Across a Silicon Quantum Well Containing Germanium

Quantum dots in SiGe/Si/SiGe heterostructures host coherent electron spin qubits, which are promising for future quantum computers. The silicon quantum well hosts near-degenerate electron valley states, creating a low-lying excited state that is known to reduce spin qubit readout and control fidelity. The valley energy splitting is dominated by the microscopic disorder in the SiGe alloy and at the Si/SiGe interfaces, and while Si devices are compatible with large-scale semiconductor manufacturing, achieving a uniformly large valley splitting energy across a many-qubit device spanning mesoscopic distances is an outstanding challenge. In this work we study valley splitting variations in a 1D quantum dot array, formed in a Si$_{0.972}$Ge$_{0.028}$ quantum well, manufactured by Intel. We observe correlations in valley splitting, at both sub-100nm (single gate) and >1$\mu$m (device) lengthscales, that are consistent with alloy disorder-dominated theory and simulation. Our results develop the mesoscopic understanding of Si/SiGe heterostructures necessary for scalable device design.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Nuclear Spin Engineering for Quantum Information Science

Semiconductors are the backbone of modern technology, garnering decades of investment in high quality materials and devices. Electron spin systems in semiconductors, including atomic defects and quantum dots, have been demonstrated in the last two decades to host quantum coherent spin qubits, often with coherent spin-photon interfaces and proximal nuclear spins. These systems are at the center of developing quantum technology. However, new material challenges arise when considering the isotopic composition of host and qubit systems. The isotopic composition governs the nature and concentration of nuclear spins, which naturally occur in leading host materials. These spins generate magnetic noise -- detrimental to qubit coherence -- but also show promise as local quantum memories and processors, necessitating careful engineering dependent on the targeted application. Reviewing recent experimental and theoretical progress towards understanding local nuclear spin environments in semiconductors, we show this aspect of material engineering as critical to quantum information technology.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Bell state generation and CNOT operation using on-demand identical photons from shape-controlled spatially ordered quantum dots

Fault tolerant on-chip photonic quantum computation is enormously helped by (a) deterministic generation of the needed thousands to millions of photon qubits from (b) quantum emitters in designed spatially ordered arrays to enable networks for implementing many-qubit logic circuits. Scaling up photonic quantum information processing systems has, however, been prevented by the lack of such quantum emitters until the demonstration of the platform of mesa-top single quantum dots (MTSQDs) -- controlled shape, size, and volume single QD -- located in designed regular arrays. Here we demonstrate 2 qubit CNOT gate operation -- a universal gate necessary to enable quantum circuits of arbitrary complexity -- in polarization basis using photons emitted from individual MTSQDs. A Bell state fidelity of 0.825$\pm$0.010 is achieved with two photon interference (TPI) visibility of 0.947$\pm$0.0015 at 4K without Purcell enhancement. The results make a strong case for developing MTSQD arrays for utility scale optical quantum information processing platforms.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Coherent Erbium Spin Defects in Colloidal Nanocrystal Hosts

We demonstrate nearly a microsecond of spin coherence in Er3+ ions doped in cerium dioxide nanocrystal hosts, despite a large gyromagnetic ratio and nanometric proximity of the spin defect to the nanocrystal surface. The long spin coherence is enabled by reducing the dopant density below the instantaneous diffusion limit in a nuclear spin-free host material, reaching the limit of a single erbium spin defect per nanocrystal. We observe a large Orbach energy in a highly symmetric cubic site, further protecting the coherence in a qubit that would otherwise rapidly decohere. Spatially correlated electron spectroscopy measurements reveal the presence of Ce3+ at the nanocrystal surface that likely acts as extraneous paramagnetic spin noise. Even with these factors, defect-embedded nanocrystal hosts show tremendous promise for quantum sensing and quantum communication applications, with multiple avenues, including core-shell fabrication, redox tuning of oxygen vacancies, and organic surfactant modification, available to further enhance their spin coherence and functionality in the future.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Extended spin relaxation times of optically addressed telecom defects in silicon carbide

Optically interfaced solid-state defects are promising candidates for quantum communication technologies. The ideal defect system would feature bright telecom emission, long-lived spin states, and a scalable material platform, simultaneously. Here, we employ one such system, vanadium (V4+) in silicon carbide (SiC), to establish a potential telecom spin-photon interface within a mature semiconductor host. This demonstration of efficient optical spin polarization and readout facilitates all optical measurements of temperature-dependent spin relaxation times (T1). With this technique, we lower the temperature from about 2K to 100 mK to observe a remarkable four-orders-of-magnitude increase in spin T1 from all measured sites, with site-specific values ranging from 57 ms to above 27 s. Furthermore, we identify the underlying relaxation mechanisms, which involve a two-phonon Orbach process, indicating the opportunity for strain-tuning to enable qubit operation at higher temperatures. These results position V4+ in SiC as a prime candidate for scalable quantum nodes in future quantum networks.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Large-Area Spatially Ordered Mesa Top Single Quantum Dots: Suitable Single Photon Emitters for On-Chip Integrated Quantum Information Processing Platforms

Realization of the long sought on-chip scalable photonic quantum information processing networks has been thwarted by the absence of spatially-ordered and scalable on-demand single photon emitters with emission figures-of-merit exceeding the required thresholds across large numbers. The positioning must meet the required degree of accuracy that enables fabricating their interconnection to create the desired functional network. Here we report on the realization of large-area spatially-ordered arrays of mesa-top single quantum dots (MTSQDs) that are demonstrated [1] to be on-demand single photon emitters with characteristics that meet the requirements for implementing quantum photonic circuits/platforms aimed at quantum key distribution, linear optical quantum computing, simulations of quantum many-body problems, and metrology/sensing. The reported GaAs/InGaAs/GaAs MTSQD arrays, grown via SESRE (substrate-encoded size-reducing epitaxy) are in multiple arrays of up to 100x100 with 5um pitch, across a centimeter radius area. We show illustrative large-area images of the emission intensity (brightness) and color-coded wavelength distribution exhibiting ~3.35nm standard deviation. Scanning transmission electron microscopy shows a remarkable control on the QD location to within ~3nm accuracy laterally and ~1nm vertically. The primary remaining challenge is the control on the uniformity of the currently wet-chemically etched as-patterned nanomesa lateral size across the substrate, a surmountable technical issue. Thus, SESRE offers the most promising approach to realizing on-chip scalable spatially-ordered arrays of on-demand bright single quantum emitters meeting the figures-of-merit required for on-chip fully integrated quantum photonic circuit platforms-monolithic (such as based upon AlGaAs on insulator) or hybrid that leverage the silicon-on-insulator (SOI) photonic integrated circuit (PIC).

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Optical and microstructural characterization of Er$^{3+}$ doped epitaxial cerium oxide on silicon

Rare-earth ion dopants in solid-state hosts are ideal candidates for quantum communication technologies such as quantum memory, due to the intrinsic spin-photon interface of the rare-earth ion combined with the integration methods available in the solid-state. Erbium-doped cerium oxide (Er:CeO$_2$) is a particularly promising platform for such a quantum memory, as it combines the telecom-wavelength (~1.5 $μ$m) 4f-4f transition of erbium, a predicted long electron spin coherence time supported by CeO$_2$, and is also near lattice-matched to silicon for heteroepitaxial growth. In this work, we report on the epitaxial growth of Er:CeO$_2$ thin films on silicon using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), with controlled erbium concentration down to 2 parts per million (ppm). We carry out a detailed microstructural study to verify the CeO$_2$ host structure, and characterize the spin and optical properties of the embedded Er$^{3+}$ ions. In the 2-3 ppm Er regime, we identify EPR linewidths of 245(1) MHz, optical inhomogeneous linewidths of 9.5(2) GHz, optical excited state lifetimes of 3.5(1) ms, and spectral diffusion-limited homogenoeus linewidths as narrow as 4.8(3) MHz in the as-grown material. We test annealing of the Er:CeO$_2$ films up to 900 deg C, which yields modest narrowing of the inhomogeneous linewidth by 20% and extension of the excited state lifetime by 40%. We have also studied the variation of the optical properties as a function of Er doping and find that the results are consistent with the trends expected from inter-dopant charge interactions.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2023

Optical and spin coherence of Er$^{3+}$ in epitaxial CeO$_2$ on silicon

Solid-state atomic defects with optical transitions in the telecommunication bands, potentially in a nuclear spin free environment, are important for applications in fiber-based quantum networks. Erbium ions doped in CeO$_2$ offer such a desired combination. Here we report on the optical homogeneous linewidth and electron spin coherence of Er$^{3+}$ ions doped in CeO$_2$ epitaxial film grown on a Si(111) substrate. The long-lived optical transition near 1530 nm in the environmentally-protected 4f shell of Er$^{3+}$ shows a narrow homogeneous linewidth of 440 kHz with an optical coherence time of 0.72 $\mu$s at 3.6 K. The reduced nuclear spin noise in the host allows for Er$^{3+}$ electron spin polarization at 3.6 K, yielding an electron spin coherence of 0.66 $\mu$s (in the isolated ion limit) and a spin relaxation of 2.5 ms. These findings indicate the potential of Er$^{3+}$:CeO$_2$ film as a valuable platform for quantum networks and communication applications.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Quantifying the limits of controllability for the nitrogen-vacancy electron spin defect

Solid-state electron spin qubits, like the nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond, rely on control sequences of population inversion to enhance sensitivity and improve device coherence. But even for this paradigmatic system, the fundamental limits of population inversion and potential impacts on applications like quantum sensing have not been assessed quantitatively. Here, we perform high accuracy simulations beyond the rotating wave approximation, including explicit unitary simulation of neighboring nuclear spins. Using quantum optimal control, we identify analytical pulses for the control of a qubit subspace within the spin-1 ground state and quantify the relationship between pulse complexity, control duration, and fidelity. We find exponentially increasing amplitude and bandwidth requirements with reduced control duration and further quantify the emergence of non-Markovian effects for multipulse sequences using sub-nanosecond population inversion. From this, we determine that the reduced fidelity and non-Markovianity is due to coherent interactions of the electron spin with the nuclear spin environment. Ultimately, we identify a potentially realizable regime of nanosecond control duration for high-fidelity multipulse sequences. These results provide key insights into the fundamental limits of quantum information processing using electron spin defects in diamond.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2021

On chip scalable highly pure and indistinguishable single photon sources in ordered arrays: Path to Quantum Optical Circuits

Realization of quantum optical circuits is at the heart of quantum photonic information processing. A long-standing obstacle however has been the absence of a platform of single photon sources (SPSs) that simultaneously satisfies the following required characteristics: spatially ordered SPS arrays that produce, on-demand, highly pure, and indistinguishable single photons with sufficiently uniform emission characteristics across the array, needed for controlled interference between photons from distinct sources to enable functional quantum optical networks. Here we report on such a platform of SPSs based upon a novel class of epitaxial quantum dots. Under resonant excitation, the SPSs (without Purcell enhancement) show single photon purity >99% (g(2)(0) ~ 0.015), high two-photon Hong-Ou-Mandel interference visibilities of 0.82 $\pm$ 0.03 (at 11.5K), and spectral nonuniformity <3nm - within established locally tunable technology. Our platform of SPSs paves the path to creating on-chip scalable quantum photonic systems.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2020

Buried spatially-regular array of spectrally ultra-uniform single quantum dots for on-chip scalable quantum optical circuits

A long standing obstacle to realizing highly sought on-chip monolithic solid state quantum optical circuits has been the lack of a starting platform comprising buried (protected) scalable spatially ordered and spectrally uniform arrays of on-demand single photon sources (SPSs). In this paper we report the first realization of such SPS arrays based upon a class of single quantum dots (SQDs) with single photon emission purity > 99.5% and uniformity < 2nm. Such SQD synthesis approach offers rich flexibility in material combinations and thus can cover the emission wavelength regime from long- to mid- to near-infrared to the visible and ultraviolet. The buried array of SQDs naturally lend themselves to the fabrication of quantum optical circuits employing either the well-developed photonic 2D crystal platform or the use of Mie-like collective resonance of all-dielectric building block based metastructures designed for directed emission and manipulation of the emitted photons in the horizontal planar architecture inherent to on-chip optical circuits. Finite element method-based simulations of the Mie-resonance based manipulation of the emitted light are presented showing achievement of simultaneous multifunctional manipulation of photons with large spectral bandwidth of ~ 20nm that eases spectral and mode matching. Our combined experimental and simulation findings presented here open the pathway for fabrication and study of on-chip quantum optical circuits.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2018

On-Chip Scalable Coupled Single Photon Emitter- All Dielectric Multifunctional Quantum Optical Circuits Working on a Single Collective Mie Resonance

We present finite element method based simulation results for on-chip controlled photon interference in optical networks based upon interconnected arrays of primitives comprising a single photon source (SPS) embedded in lithographically fabricable rectangular dielectric building block (DBB) based metastructures in which a single collective Mie resonance of the whole circuit provides the needed light manipulating functions of nanoantenna, state-preserving-guiding, beam-splitting and beam-combining. Efficient coupling of the SPSs to the co-designed collective Mie mode of DBBs is achieved. The findings provide strong incentive for the fabrication and examination of such optical circuits that underlie on-chip scalable nanophotonic quantum information processing systems.

physics.optics↗