Article,
Topological protection of biphoton states
Science, 362 (6414): 568--571 (2018)
DOI: 10.1126/science.aau4296
Abstract
Photons are readily generated, are fast and can travel vast distances, and are ideal carriers of quantum information. Practical applications, such as quantum computing, will likely be based on an optical-chip platform and require the manipulation of multiphoton states. The inevitable scattering and loss of photons in such a platform would be detrimental for application. Blanco-Redondo et al. show how a specially designed optical circuit based on topology can offer protection for propagating biphoton states. The results show that topological design consideration could provide the desired robustness required for quantum optical circuitry.Science, this issue p. 568The robust generation and propagation of multiphoton quantum states are crucial for applications in quantum information, computing, and communications. Although photons are intrinsically well isolated from the thermal environment, scaling to large quantum optical devices is still limited by scattering loss and other errors arising from random fabrication imperfections. The recent discoveries regarding topological phases have introduced avenues to construct quantum systems that are protected against scattering and imperfections. We experimentally demonstrate topological protection of biphoton states, the building block for quantum information systems. We provide clear evidence of the robustness of the spatial features and the propagation constant of biphoton states generated within a nanophotonics lattice with nontrivial topology and propose a concrete path to build robust entangled states for quantum gates.
