Experimental certification of level dynamics in single-photon emitters

TL;DR

This paper introduces a comprehensive method to analyze photon emission dynamics in single-photon emitters using all detection coincidences, improving understanding of their energy level structures for quantum applications.

Contribution

It presents a novel analysis technique that utilizes all normalized coincidences in HBT measurements to certify emitter properties, surpassing traditional partial correlation methods.

Findings

Successfully applied to nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond

Conclusively rejects two-level emitter models with classical noise

Enhances understanding of photon emission dynamics

Abstract

Emitters of single-photons are essential resources for emerging quantum technologies and developed within different platforms including nonlinear optics, atomic and solid-state systems. The energy level structures of emission processes are critical for reaching and controlling high-quality sources. The most commonly applied test uses a Hanbury-Brown and Twiss (HBT) setup to determine the emitter energy level structure based on fitting temporal correlations of photon detection events. However, only partial information about the emission process is extracted from such detection, that might be followed by an inconclusive fitting of the data. This process predetermines our limited ability to quantify and understand the dynamics in the photon emission process that are of importance for the applications in communication, sensing and computing. In this work, we present a complete analysis based on all normalized coincidences between detection and no-detection events recorded in the same HBT setup to certify expected properties of an emitted photonic state. As a proof of concept we apply our methodology to single nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond, in which case the certification conclusively rejects a model based on a two-level emitter that radiates a photonic states mixed with any classical noise background.