Sensing Based on Quantum Correlation of Photons in the Weak Nonlinear Regime

TL;DR

This paper proposes using quantum interference and photon correlation effects, specifically unconventional photon blockade in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, for highly sensitive sensing of parameters like angular velocity and temperature.

Contribution

It introduces schemes to utilize quantum correlation of photons for practical sensing applications, expanding the use of UPB beyond single-photon sources.

Findings

Second-order correlation function is highly sensitive to system parameters.

UPB can be observed in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer setup.

Quantum correlation offers enhanced sensitivity over mean photon number.

Abstract

Quantum correlation of photons based on quantum interference, such as unconventional photon blockade (UPB), has been extensively studied for realizing single-photon sources in weak nonlinear regime. However, how to use this effect for other practical applications is rarely studied. Here, we propose schemes to realize sensitive sensing by the quantum correlation of photons based on quantum interference. We demonstrate that UPB can be observed in the mixing field output from a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) with two cavities in the two arms based on quantum interference. We show that the second-order correlation function of the output field is sensitive to the parameters of system and propose schemes to realize angular velocity and temperature sensing by measuring the second-order correlation of the photons output from the MZI. We find that the second-order correlation function of the output field is much more sensitive to the parameters of system than the mean photon number, which provides an application scenario for the quantum correlation of photons in sensitive sensing.