Subnatural-linewidth biphotons from a Doppler-broadened hot atomic vapour cell

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Abstract

Entangled photon pairs, termed as biphotons, have been the benchmark tool for experimental quantum optics. The quantum-network protocols based on photon-atom interfaces have stimulated a great demand for single photons with bandwidth comparable to or narrower than the atomic natural linewidth. In the past decade, laser-cooled atoms have often been used for producing such biphotons, but the apparatus is too large and complicated for engineering. Here we report the generation of subnatural-linewidth (<6 MHz) biphotons from a Doppler-broadened (530 MHz) hot atomic vapour cell. We use on-resonance spontaneous four-wave mixing in a hot paraffin-coated 87 Rb vapour cell at 63 °C to produce biphotons with controllable bandwidth (1.9-3.2 MHz) and coherence time (47-94 ns). Our backward phase-matching scheme with spatially separated optical pumping is the key to suppress uncorrelated photons from resonance fluorescence. The result may lead towards miniature narrowband biphoton sources.

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Shu, C., Chen, P., Chow, T. K. A., Zhu, L., Xiao, Y., Loy, M. M. T., & Du, S. (2016). Subnatural-linewidth biphotons from a Doppler-broadened hot atomic vapour cell. Nature Communications, 7. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms12783

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