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[en] Directly contradictory arguments coexist regarding the conservation rule of orbital angular momentum in spontaneous parametric down-conversion. We analytically show how this rule is decided by spatial symmetry. We discover that the down-converted photon pairs can carry non-negligible extrinsic orbital angular momentum in the degrees of relative-movement freedom due to spatial symmetry breaking, leading to nonconservation of total orbital angular momentum in type-II down-conversion. Also, we demonstrate that the traditional technique does not measure the extrinsic orbital angular momentum

[en] A quantum theory of two-photon-state generation via four-wave mixing in optical fibers is studied, with emphasis on the case where the pump is a classical, narrow (picosecond-duration) pulse. One of the experiments performed in our lab is discussed and analyzed. Numerical predictions from the theory are shown to be in good agreement with the experimental results

[en] We propose an avenue toward distillation of quantum entanglement that is implemented by directly passing the entangled qubits through a mode-matched filter. This approach can be applied to a common class of entanglement impurities appearing in photonic systems, where the impurities inherently occupy different spatiotemporal modes than the entangled qubits. As a specific application, we show that our method can be used to significantly purify the telecom-band entanglement generated via the Kerr nonlinearity in single-mode fibers where a substantial amount of Raman-scattering noise is concomitantly produced.

[en] We investigate schemes for generating polarization-entangled photon pairs in standard optical fibres. The advantages of a double-loop scheme are explored through comparison with two other schemes, namely, the Sagnac-loop scheme and the counter-propagating scheme. Experimental measurements with the double-loop scheme verify the predicted advantages

[en] A major obstacle to a practical, heralded source of single photons is the fundamental trade-off between high purity and high production rate. To overcome this difficulty, we propose applying sequential spectral and temporal filtering on the signal photons before they are detected for heralding. Based on a multimode theory that takes into account the effect of simultaneous multiple photon-pair emission, we find that these filters can be optimized to yield both high purity and a high production rate. While the optimization conditions vary depending on the underlying photon-pair spectral correlations, all correlation profiles can lead to similarly high performance levels when optimized filters are employed. This suggests that a better strategy for improving the performance of heralded single-photon sources is to adopt an appropriate measurement scheme for the signal photons, rather than tailoring the properties of the photon-pair generation medium.

[en] The non-zero response time of the Kerr (χ⁽³⁾) nonlinearity determines the quantum-limited noise figure of χ⁽³⁾ parametric amplifiers and wavelength converters. This non-zero response time of the nonlinearity requires coupling of the parametric amplification process to a molecular-vibration phonon bath, causing the addition of excess noise through Raman gain or loss. The effect of this excess noise on the noise figure of the amplifier can be significant. We derive analytical expressions for this quantum-limited noise figure in the case of non-degenerate phase-insensitive operation of a χ⁽³⁾ parametric amplifier and show excellent agreement with experiment without any fitting parameter. We also derive analytical expressions for the quantum limited noise figure for χ⁽³⁾-based wavelength converters

[en] By utilizing a fiber-based indistinguishable photon-pair source in the 1.55 μm telecommunications band [J. Chen et al., Opt. Lett. 31, 2798 (2006)], we present the first, to the best of our knowledge, deterministic quantum splitter based on the principle of time-reversed Hong-Ou-Mandel quantum interference. The deterministically separated identical photons' indistinguishability is then verified by using a conventional Hong-Ou-Mandel quantum interference, which exhibits a near-unity dip visibility of 94±1%, making this quantum splitter useful for various quantum information processing applications

[en] Recently, our group demonstrated an ultrafast, low-loss, fiber-loop switch based on a nonlinear Sagnac-interferometer design, using which entangled photons were shown to be routed without any measurable degradation in their entanglement fidelity (Hall et al 2011 Phys. Rev. Lett. 106 053901). Such a device represents an enabling technology for a rich variety of networked quantum applications. In this paper, we develop a comprehensive quantum theory for such switches in general, i.e. those based on nonlinear Sagnac interferometers, where the in-coupling of quantum noise is carefully modeled. When applied to the fiber-loop switch, the theory shows good agreement with the experimental results without using any fitting parameter. This theory can serve as an important guiding tool for configuring switches of this kind for future quantum networking applications. (paper)

[en] Variation in actuation voltage for RF MEMS switches is observed as a result of stress-generated buckling of MEMS structures. Large voltage driven RF-MEMS switches are a major concern in space bound communication applications. In this paper, we propose a low voltage driven RF MEMS capacitive switch with the introduction of perforations and reinforcement. The performance of the fabricated switch is compared with conventional capacitive RF MEMS switches. The pull-in voltage of the switch is reduced from 70 V to 16.2 V and the magnitude of deformation is reduced from 8 µ m to 1 µ m. The design of the reinforcement frame enhances the structural stiffness by 46 % without affecting the high frequency response of the switch. The measured isolation and insertion loss of the reinforced switch is more than 20 dB and 0.4 dB over the X band range. (paper)