Chirped Pulses Meet Quantum Dots: Innovations, Challenges, and Future Perspectives

Abstract

Shaped laser pulses have been remarkably effective in investigating various aspects of light–matter interactions spanning a broad range of research. Chirped laser pulses exhibiting a time-varying frequency, or quadratic spectral phase, form a crucial category in the group of shaped laser pulses. This type of pulses have made a ubiquitous presence from spectroscopic applications to developments in high-power laser technology, and from nanophotonics to quantum optical communication, ever since their introduction. In the case of quantum technologies recently, substantial efforts are being invested toward achieving a truly scalable architecture. Concurrently, it is important to develop methods to produce robust photon sources. In this context, semiconductor quantum dots hold great potential, due to their exceptional photophysical properties and on-demand operating nature. Concerning the scalability aspect of semiconductor quantum dots, it is advantageous to develop a simple, yet robust method to generate photon states from it. Chirped pulse excitation has been widely demonstrated as a robust and efficient state preparation scheme in quantum dots, thereby boosting its applicability as a stable photon source in a real-world scenario. Despite the rapid growth and advancements in laser technologies, the generation and control of chirped laser pulses can be demanding. Here, an overview of a selected few approaches is presented to tailor and characterize chirped pulses for the efficient excitation of a quantum dot source. By taking the chirped-pulse-induced adiabatic rapid passage process in quantum dot as an example, numerical design examples are presented along with experimental advantages and challenges in each method and conclude with an outlook on future perspectives.