arXiv subjects

Martin M. Fejer

Publications and source records attributed to Martin M. Fejer.

26 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Experimental investigation of performance differences between Coherent Ising Machines and a quantum annealer

Physical annealing systems provide heuristic approaches to solving NP-hard Ising optimization problems. Here, we study the performance of two types of annealing machines--a commercially available quantum annealer built by D-Wave Systems, and measurement-feedback coherent Ising machines (CIMs) based on optical parametric oscillator networks--on two classes of problems, the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick (SK) model and MAX-CUT. The D-Wave quantum annealer outperforms the CIMs on MAX-CUT on regular graphs of degree 3. On denser problems, however, we observe an exponential penalty for the quantum annealer ($\exp(-α_\textrm{DW} N^2)$) relative to CIMs ($\exp(-α_\textrm{CIM} N)$) for fixed anneal times, on both the SK model and on 50%-edge-density MAX-CUT, where the coefficients $α_\textrm{CIM}$ and $α_\textrm{DW}$ are problem-class-dependent. On instances with over $50$ vertices, a several-orders-of-magnitude time-to-solution difference exists between CIMs and the D-Wave annealer. An optimal-annealing-time analysis is also consistent with a significant projected performance difference. The difference in performance between the sparsely connected D-Wave machine and the measurement-feedback facilitated all-to-all connectivity of the CIMs provides strong experimental support for efforts to increase the connectivity of quantum annealers.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2018

Ultrahigh-efficiency second-harmonic generation in nanophotonic PPLN waveguides

Periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) waveguide is a powerful platform for efficient wavelength conversion. Conventional PPLN converters however typically require long device lengths and high pump powers due to the limited nonlinear interaction strength. Here we use a nanostructured PPLN waveguides to demonstrate an ultrahigh normalized efficiency of 2600%/W-cm$^2$ for second-harmonic generation of 1.5-$μ$m radiation, more than 20 times higher than that in state-of-the-art diffused waveguides. This is achieved by a combination of sub-wavelength optical confinement and high-fidelity periodic poling at a first-order poling period of 4 $μ$m. Our highly integrated PPLN waveguides are promising for future chip-scale integration of classical and quantum photonic systems.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2016

Multidimensional mode-separable frequency conversion for high-speed quantum communication

Quantum frequency conversion (QFC) of photonic signals preserves quantum information while simultaneously changing the signal wavelength. A common application of QFC is to translate the wavelength of a signal compatible with the current fiber-optic infrastructure to a shorter wavelength more compatible with high quality single-photon detectors and optical memories. Recent work has investigated the use of QFC to manipulate and measure specific temporal modes (TMs) through tailoring of the pump pulses. Such a scheme holds promise for multidimensional quantum state manipulation that is both low loss and re-programmable on a fast time scale. We demonstrate the first QFC temporal mode sorting system in a four-dimensional Hilbert space, achieving a conversion efficiency and mode separability as high as 92% and 0.84, respectively. A 20-GHz pulse train is projected onto 6 different TMs, including superposition states, and mode separability with weak coherent signals is verified via photon counting. Such ultrafast high-dimensional photonic signals could enable long-distance quantum communication with high rates.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2016

Reduced models and design principles for half-harmonic generation in synchronously-pumped optical parametric oscillators

We develop reduced models that describe half-harmonic generation in a synchronously-pumped optical parametric oscillator above threshold, where nonlinearity, dispersion, and group-velocity mismatch are all relevant. These models are based on (1) an eigenmode expansion for low pump powers, (2) a simulton-like sech-pulse ansatz for intermediate powers, and (3) dispersionless box-shaped pulses for high powers. Analytic formulas for pulse compression, degenerate vs. nondegenerate operation, and stability are derived and compared to numerical and experimental results.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Medium range structural order in amorphous tantala spatially resolved with changes to atomic structure by thermal annealing

Amorphous tantala (a-Ta2O5) is an important technological material that has wide ranging applications in electronics, optics and the biomedical industry. It is used as the high refractive index layers in the multi-layer dielectric mirror coatings in the latest generation of gravitational wave interferometers, as well as other precision interferometers. One of the current limitations in sensitivity of gravitational wave detectors is Brownian thermal noise that arises from the tantala mirror coatings. Measurements have shown differences in mechanical loss of the mirror coatings, which is directly related to Brownian thermal noise, in response to thermal annealing. We utilise scanning electron diffraction to perform Fluctuation Electron Microscopy (FEM) on Ion Beam Sputtered (IBS) amorphous tantala coatings, definitively showing an increase in the medium range order (MRO), as determined from the variance between the diffraction patterns in the scan, due to thermal annealing at increasing temperatures. Moreover, we employ Virtual Dark-Field Imaging (VDFi) to spatially resolve the FEM signal, enabling investigation of the persistence of the fragments responsible for the medium range order, as well as the extent of the ordering over nm length scales, and show ordered patches larger than 5 nm in the highest temperature annealed sample. These structural changes directly correlate with the observed changes in mechanical loss.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2006

Modified Sagnac interferometer for high-sensitivity magneto-optic measurements atcryogenic temperatures

We describe a geometry for a Sagnac interferometer with a zero-area Sagnac loop for measuring magneto-optic Kerr effect (MOKE) at cryogenic temperatures. The apparatus is capable of measuring absolute polar Kerr rotation at 1550 nm wavelength without any modulation of the magnetic state of the sample, and is intrinsically immune to reciprocal effects such as linear birefringence and thermal fluctuation. A single strand of polarization-maintaining (PM) fiber is fed into a liquid helium probe, eliminating the need for optical viewports. This configuration makes it possible to conduct MOKE measurements at much lower temperatures than before. With an optical power of only 10 $μ$W, we demonstrate static Kerr measurements with a shot-noise limited sensitivity of $1\times 10^{-7}$ rad/$\sqrt{\rm Hz}$ from room temperature down to 2K. Typical bias drift was measured to be $3\times 10^{-7}$ rad/hour.

cond-mat.other↗

arXiv2003

Mechanical Loss in Tantala/Silica Dielectric Mirror Coatings

Current interferometric gravitational wave detectors use test masses with mirror coatings formed from multiple layers of dielectric materials, most commonly alternating layers of SiO2 (silica) and Ta2O5 (tantala). However, mechanical loss in the Ta2O5/SiO2 coatings may limit the design sensitivity for advanced detectors. We have investigated sources of mechanical loss in the Ta2O5/SiO2 coatings, including loss associated with the coating-substrate interface, with the coating-layer interfaces, and with the bulk material. Our results indicate that the loss is associated with the bulk coating materials and that the loss of Ta2O5 is substantially larger than that of SiO2.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2001

Thermal noise in interferometric gravitational wave detectors due to dielectric optical coatings

We report on thermal noise from the internal friction of dielectric coatings made from alternating layers of Ta2O5 and SiO2 deposited on fused silica substrates. We present calculations of the thermal noise in gravitational wave interferometers due to optical coatings, when the material properties of the coating are different from those of the substrate and the mechanical loss angle in the coating is anisotropic. The loss angle in the coatings for strains parallel to the substrate surface was determined from ringdown experiments. We measured the mechanical quality factor of three fused silica samples with coatings deposited on them. The loss angle of the coating material for strains parallel to the coated surface was found to be (4.2 +- 0.3)*10^(-4) for coatings deposited on commercially polished slides and (1.0 +- 0.3)*10^{-4} for a coating deposited on a superpolished disk. Using these numbers, we estimate the effect of coatings on thermal noise in the initial LIGO and advanced LIGO interferometers. We also find that the corresponding prediction for thermal noise in the 40 m LIGO prototype at Caltech is consistent with the noise data. These results are complemented by results for a different type of coating, presented in a companion paper.

gr-qc↗