Single photons are essential resource for quantum communication and quantum information processing, which can carry quantum information to distant locations. A promising scheme for single photon generation is the heralded single photon source (HSPS), which is based on the generation of correlated photon pairs (CPPs). Utilizing the quantum correlation property of the CPPs, one photon of the CPP is detected providing an electrical signal to herald the other photon as a single photon output. Recently, 1.5 μm CPP generation through spontaneously four wave-mixing (SFWM) in fiber has focused much attention, which provides a practical way to realize 1.5 μm fiber-based HSPS. The quality of a HSPS is described by the preparation efficiency and g⁽²⁾(0). In the fiber-based HSPS, the preparation efficiency is determined by the loss of the filtering and splitting system and the noise photons generated by spontaneously Raman scattering (SpRS). Considering the impact of the SpRS can be reduced by cooling the fiber and optimizing the frequency detuning of filtering and splitting system, the loss of the filtering and splitting system may give a theoretical up-limit of the preparation efficiency. In this paper, using commercial fiber components, we realize a high quality HSPS based on cooled fiber with a preparation efficiency of 80% under a g⁽²⁾(0) of0.06, showing its great potential in the application of quantum information technology.

Date Published: 29 November 2012
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 8554, Quantum and Nonlinear Optics II, 85540H (29 November 2012); doi: 10.1117/12.2000998

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8554:
Quantum and Nonlinear Optics II
Qihuang Gong; Guang-Can Guo; Yuen-Ron Shen, Editor(s)