Information, communication and sensing lies at the heart of the social and economic dynamics; in this context, quantum physics has recently offered radically new avenues to treat and transmit information in a more secure and efficient way than what we can do with classical systems (exchange of sensitive data, enhancement of computing capabilities, increased precision in measurements).
In parallel with fundamental researches aiming to test the foundations and limits of quantum information science, we are witnessing today to the maturation of quantum information technologies among which photonics is playing a central role. Currently, one of the main technological challenges towards large-scale applications is the miniaturization of different building blocks on a single chip operating at room temperature. In this respect, semiconductor materials are ideal to achieve extremely compact and massively parallel devices.
This project is focused on the demonstration of optically and/or electrically driven integrated quantum photonic circuits including photon pair generation and manipulation, working at room temperature and telecom wavelength. The starting point is constituted by two III-V semiconductor sources of nonclassical states of light recently demonstrated within the consortium: an electrically injected source of photon pairs (F. Boitier et al., Phys. Rev. Lett., May 9 2014), and a ridge microcavity emitting counterpropagating entangled photons (A. Orieux et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 160502 – 2013).
SemiQuantRoom will have 3 main objectives: the optimization of these sources, the characterization of the original quantum properties of the emitted bi-photon states and the monolithic or hybrid (III-V/Si) integration of these devices with quantum photonic circuits.
This choice combines the advantages of two material platforms. On one hand, III-V semiconductors do afford excellent optical properties and, thanks to their direct bandgap, present en evident interest for electrically driven devices. Recent achievements in Si photonics has shown that SOS and SOI circuits are promising platforms for optical components offering the added value of compatibility with the mature and high-quality CMOS technology.