TY - JOUR
T1 - High efficiency single photon detection via frequency up-conversion
AU - Vandevender, Aaron P.
AU - Kwiat, Paul G.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the MURI Center for Photonic Quantum Information Systems (ARO/ARDA program DAAD19-03-1-0199). Additional funding for this research was provided by the DCI postdoctoral program. We would like to thank Richard Hughes of Los Alamos National Laboratory and ARDA for their assistance in conducting this research, as well as thank Franco Wong and Marius Albota from MIT for helpful discussions.
PY - 2004
Y1 - 2004
N2 - We propose a method of single photon detection of infrared (IR) photons at potentially higher efficiencies and lower noise than allowed by traditional IR band avalanche photodiodes (APDs). By up-converting the photon from the IR, e.g. 1550 nm, to a visible wavelength in a nonlinear crystal, we can utilize the much higher efficiency of silicon APDs at these wavelengths. We have used a periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal and a pulsed 1064 nm Nd:YAG laser to perform the up-conversion to a 631 nm photon. We observed conversion efficiencies as high as ∼ 80%, and demonstrated scaling down to the single photon level while maintaining a background of 3 ×s; 10−4 dark counts per count. We also propose a 2-crystal extension of this scheme, whereby orthogonal polarizations may be up-converted coherently, thus enabling complete quantum state transduction of arbitrary states.
AB - We propose a method of single photon detection of infrared (IR) photons at potentially higher efficiencies and lower noise than allowed by traditional IR band avalanche photodiodes (APDs). By up-converting the photon from the IR, e.g. 1550 nm, to a visible wavelength in a nonlinear crystal, we can utilize the much higher efficiency of silicon APDs at these wavelengths. We have used a periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal and a pulsed 1064 nm Nd:YAG laser to perform the up-conversion to a 631 nm photon. We observed conversion efficiencies as high as ∼ 80%, and demonstrated scaling down to the single photon level while maintaining a background of 3 ×s; 10−4 dark counts per count. We also propose a 2-crystal extension of this scheme, whereby orthogonal polarizations may be up-converted coherently, thus enabling complete quantum state transduction of arbitrary states.
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U2 - 10.1080/09500340408235283
DO - 10.1080/09500340408235283
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:3142559923
SN - 0950-0340
VL - 51-9
SP - 1433
EP - 1445
JO - Journal of Modern Optics
JF - Journal of Modern Optics
IS - 10
ER -