Deterministic Single-Phonon Source Triggered by a Single Photon

TL;DR

This paper proposes a scheme for deterministic single phonon generation triggered by single photons using an integrated quantum dot in an opto-mechanical circuit, enabling advanced quantum phononic functionalities.

Contribution

It introduces a novel on-chip scheme with new opto-mechanical components for controlled single phonon emission triggered by single photons.

Findings

Design of new opto-mechanical circuit elements

Feasibility within current nano-fabrication techniques

Potential for on-chip quantum phononic applications

Abstract

We propose a scheme that enables the deterministic generation of single phonons at GHz frequencies triggered by single photons in the near infrared. This process is mediated by a quantum dot embedded on-chip in an opto-mechanical circuit, which allows for the simultaneous control of the relevant photonic and phononic frequencies. We devise new opto-mechanical circuit elements that constitute the necessary building blocks for the proposed scheme and are readily implementable within the current state-of-the-art of nano-fabrication. This will open new avenues for implementing quantum functionalities based on phonons as an on-chip quantum bus.