Single-photon phase spectrum recovery from the Hong-Ou-Mandel dip

TL;DR

This paper introduces a phase retrieval method to accurately reconstruct the phase spectrum difference of single photons from Hong-Ou-Mandel interference data, simplifying quantum photon characterization.

Contribution

The authors develop a generalizable phase retrieval technique using Hong-Ou-Mandel dips, enabling efficient measurement of single-photon spectral phases with minimal data collection.

Findings

Achieved phase spectrum difference accuracy within ±0.1 rad.

Validated method with weak coherent wave packets.

Simplified process requiring only one-dimensional data collection.

Abstract

Characterizing the temporal-spectral profile of single photons is essential for quantum information protocol utilizing temporal mode for encoding. Based on the phase retrieval algorithm, we present a method to reconstruct the phase spectrum difference between two wave packets from their Hong-Ou-Mandel dip, and intensity spectra. Our confirmatory experiment with weak coherent wave packets demonstrated the accuracy of the reconstructed phase spectrum difference to within plus or minus 0.1 rad. This method is generalizable to the measurement of unknown single-photon wave packets with the aid of a reference wave packet, requiring only the collection of one-dimensional data, which simplifies and expedites the process.