Quantum frequency combs and Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometry: the role of spectral phase coherence
Abstract
The Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometer is a versatile tool for analyzing the joint properties of photon pairs, relying on a truly quantum interference effect between two-photon probability amplitudes. While the theory behind this form of two-photon interferometry is well established, the development of advanced photon sources and exotic two-photon states has highlighted the importance of quantifying precisely what information can and cannot be inferred from features in a Hong-Ou-Mandel interference trace. Here we examine Hong-Ou-Mandel interference with regard to a particular class of states, so-called quantum frequency combs, and place special emphasis on the role spectral phase plays in these measurements. We find that this form of two-photon interferometry is insensitive to the relative phase between different comb line pairs. This is true even when different comb line pairs are mutually coherent at the input of a Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometer, and the fringe patterns display sharp temporal features. Consequently, Hong-Ou-Mandel interference cannot speak to the presence of high-dimensional frequency-bin entanglement in two-photon quantum frequency combs.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1909.13823,
title = {Quantum frequency combs and Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometry: the role of spectral phase coherence},
author = {Navin B. Lingaraju and Hsuan-Hao Lu and Suparna Seshadri and Poolad Imany and Daniel E. Leaird and Joseph M. Lukens and Andrew M. Weiner},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1909.13823},
year = {2019}
}
Comments
10 pages, 7 figures