01386nas a2200193 4500008004100000245004800041210004700089260001500136520082300151100002300974700002300997700002101020700002101041700002401062700002501086700002701111700001701138856003701155 2018 eng d00aPhoton Subtraction by Many-Body Decoherence0 aPhoton Subtraction by ManyBody Decoherence c2018/03/133 a
We present an experimental and theoretical investigation of the scattering-induced decoherence of multiple photons stored in a strongly interacting atomic ensemble. We derive an exact solution to this many-body problem, allowing for a rigorous understanding of the underlying dissipative quantum dynamics. Combined with our experiments, this analysis demonstrates a correlated coherence-protection process, in which the induced decoherence of one photon can preserve the spatial coherence of all others. We discuss how this effect can be used to manipulate light at the quantum level, providing a robust mechanism for single-photon subtraction, and experimentally demonstrate this capability.
1 aMurray, Callum, R.1 aMirgorodskiy, Ivan1 aTresp, Christoph1 aBraun, Christoph1 aParis-Mandoki, Asaf1 aGorshkov, Alexey, V.1 aHofferberth, Sebastian1 aPohl, Thomas uhttps://arxiv.org/abs/1710.1004701559nas a2200157 4500008004100000245008500041210006900126260001500195300001100210490000700221520104000228100002301268700002501291700001701316856006801333 2016 eng d00aMany-body decoherence dynamics and optimised operation of a single-photon switch0 aManybody decoherence dynamics and optimised operation of a singl c2016/09/13 a0920010 v183 aWe develop a theoretical framework to characterize the decoherence dynamics due to multi-photon scattering in an all-optical switch based on Rydberg atom induced nonlinearities. By incorporating the knowledge of this decoherence process into optimal photon storage and retrieval strategies, we establish optimised switching protocols for experimentally relevant conditions, and evaluate the corresponding limits in the achievable fidelities. Based on these results we work out a simplified description that reproduces recent experiments [arXiv:1511.09445] and provides a new interpretation in terms of many-body decoherence involving multiple incident photons and multiple gate excitations forming the switch. Aside from offering insights into the operational capacity of realistic photon switching capabilities, our work provides a complete description of spin wave decoherence in a Rydberg quantum optics setting, and has immediate relevance to a number of further applications employing photon storage in Rydberg media.
1 aMurray, Callum, R.1 aGorshkov, Alexey, V.1 aPohl, Thomas uhttp://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1367-2630/18/9/09200101270nas a2200193 4500008004100000245005700041210005700098260001500155300001100170490000700181520071900188100002700907700002000934700002100954700001700975700002200992700002501014856003701039 2015 eng d00aFractional Quantum Hall States of Rydberg Polaritons0 aFractional Quantum Hall States of Rydberg Polaritons c2015/03/31 a0338380 v913 a We propose a scheme for realizing fractional quantum Hall states of light. In our scheme, photons of two polarizations are coupled to different atomic Rydberg states to form two flavors of Rydberg polaritons that behave as an effective spin. An array of optical cavity modes overlapping with the atomic cloud enables the realization of an effective spin-1/2 lattice. We show that the dipolar interaction between such polaritons, inherited from the Rydberg states, can be exploited to create a flat, topological band for a single spin-flip excitation. At half filling, this gives rise to a photonic (or polaritonic) fractional Chern insulator -- a lattice-based, fractional quantum Hall state of light. 1 aMaghrebi, Mohammad, F.1 aYao, Norman, Y.1 aHafezi, Mohammad1 aPohl, Thomas1 aFirstenberg, Ofer1 aGorshkov, Alexey, V. uhttp://arxiv.org/abs/1411.6624v101151nas a2200145 4500008004100000245005800041210005700099260001300156490000800169520073200177100002500909700001700934700001700951856003700968 2013 eng d00aDissipative Many-body Quantum Optics in Rydberg Media0 aDissipative Manybody Quantum Optics in Rydberg Media c2013/4/90 v1103 a We develop a theoretical framework for the dissipative propagation of quantized light in interacting optical media under conditions of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). The theory allows us to determine the peculiar spatiotemporal structure of the output of two complementary Rydberg-EIT-based light-processing modules: the recently demonstrated single-photon filter and the recently proposed single-photon subtractor, which, respectively, let through and absorb a single photon. In addition to being crucial for applications of these and other optical quantum devices, the theory opens the door to the study of exotic dissipative many-body dynamics of strongly interacting photons in nonlinear nonlocal media. 1 aGorshkov, Alexey, V.1 aNath, Rejish1 aPohl, Thomas uhttp://arxiv.org/abs/1211.7060v101088nas a2200169 4500008004100000245005200041210005100093260001400144490000800158520060000166100002500766700002400791700002600815700001700841700002300858856003700881 2011 eng d00aPhoton-Photon Interactions via Rydberg Blockade0 aPhotonPhoton Interactions via Rydberg Blockade c2011/9/220 v1073 a We develop the theory of light propagation under the conditions of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) in systems involving strongly interacting Rydberg states. Taking into account the quantum nature and the spatial propagation of light, we analyze interactions involving few-photon pulses. We demonstrate that this system can be used for the generation of nonclassical states of light including trains of single photons with an avoided volume between them, for implementing photon-photon quantum gates, as well as for studying many-body phenomena with strongly correlated photons. 1 aGorshkov, Alexey, V.1 aOtterbach, Johannes1 aFleischhauer, Michael1 aPohl, Thomas1 aLukin, Mikhail, D. uhttp://arxiv.org/abs/1103.3700v1