Experimental analysis of a four-qubit photon cluster state

Abstract

Linear-optics quantum logic operations enabled the observation of a four-photon cluster state. We prove genuine four-partite entanglement and study its persistency, demonstrating remarkable differences from the usual Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) state. Efficient analysis tools are introduced in the experiment, which will be of great importance in further studies on multiparticle entangled states. © 2005 The American Physical Society.