Quantum light generation on a silicon chip using waveguides and resonators

TL;DR

This paper proposes a silicon chip design with periodic waveguides and resonators that can generate over 1 Giga-pairs of quantum light per second at telecom wavelengths, using low power and enabling multiplexed quantum sources.

Contribution

It introduces a novel periodic waveguide structure with resonators that surpasses conventional methods in quantum light generation efficiency and spectral control.

Findings

Over 1 Giga-pairs per second generation rate

Low power operation (~10 mW)

Potential for wavelength-division multiplexing

Abstract

Integrated optical devices may replace bulk crystal or fiber based assemblies with a more compact and controllable photon pair and heralded single photon source and generate quantum light at telecommunications wavelengths. Here, we propose that a periodic waveguide consisting of a sequence of optical resonators may outperform conventional waveguides or single resonators and generate more than 1 Giga-pairs per second from a sub-millimeter-long room-temperature silicon device, pumped with only about 10 milliwatts of optical power. Furthermore, the spectral properties of such devices provide novel opportunities of wavelength-division multiplexed chip-scale quantum light sources.