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This review highlights the recent progress which has been made towards improved single-photon detector technologies and the impact these developments will have on quantum optics and quantum information science.
By combining Fourier transform spectroscopy with two frequency-shifted combs and cavity ring-down spectroscopy, scientists demonstrate a powerful new tool for ultrahigh sensitivity spectroscopy. The scheme can measure broadband, high-resolution spectra in tens of microseconds, does not require detector arrays and may allow tuning from terahertz to ultraviolet frequencies.
A compact source of 60-fs pulses is demonstrated, based on a semiconductor laser that is mode-locked using a saturable absorber mirror in an external cavity.
Mechanisms of distinct resonance in microcavities driven by strongly detuned single quantum dots are not well understood. Investigation of non-resonant dot–cavity coupling of individual quantum dots in micropillars now suggests a dominant role of phonon-mediated dephasing. This new perspective may have implications for single-photon sources, quantum information applications and spectroscopy.
The first observation of the Hong–Ou–Mandel coalescence of photons with orbital angular momentum (OAM) is demonstrated, and this is exploited for optimal quantum cloning of OAM-encoded qubits. OAM states may function as units of quantum information in higher-dimensional space and allow increased information content per photon.
A terahertz wire laser with an unprecedented tuning range of ∼137 GHz has been demonstrated. This scheme relies on bringing dielectric or metallic structures into close proximity with the wire, thus modifying the properties of its guided mode.
An amplifier for terahertz pulses is demonstrated using an Auston switch to perform ultrafast gain switching in a quantum cascade laser. The approach may benefit terahertz imaging and sensing schemes as it overcomes the phenomenon of gain clamping, which usually limits the amplification available in a laser.
Stanford University researchers have demonstrated the potential of single SiC whiskers to function as narrowband infrared emitters that have controllable emission characteristics.
Customizing the refractive index of wells and barriers in a periodic array of quantum wells yields a way to control the reflectivity and dispersion of an excitonic lattice. The result is a new method for slowing or modulating light.
Controlling the transport of charge carriers between two semiconductor nanostructures using an acoustic wave yields a high-repetition-rate source of single photons with tunable emission energy.
From humble beginnings, the Belgian company Xenics has grown to become one of the world's leading suppliers of short-wave infrared cameras outside the US. Nadya Anscombe finds out how the company has survived the economic crisis by changing its business strategy and continually developing its products.
With new laser sources and detectors coming onto the market, terahertz imaging is starting to become a valuable tool for non-destructive testing, process control and quality inspection.
Although the machine vision industry is being affected by the global recession, Mats Gökstorp, president of the European Machine Vision Association, explains to Nadya Anscombe why he is optimistic about the industry's future.
