Indistinguishable photons from an artificial atom in silicon photonics

Area of Science:

• Quantum photonics
• Solid-state quantum emitters
• Silicon photonics

Background:

• Silicon photonics offers scalability for quantum technologies by leveraging semiconductor manufacturing.
• A key challenge is the lack of deterministic quantum light sources in silicon.
• Artificial atoms present a potential solution for on-demand single-photon generation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate an indistinguishable single photon source in silicon photonics.
• To utilize a G center in silicon as an artificial atom for quantum light generation.
• To assess the suitability of these sources for quantum networking applications.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of silicon waveguides containing G centers.
• High-resolution spectroscopy to characterize photon emission.
• Time-delayed two-photon interference measurements to confirm indistinguishability.

Main Results:

• A G center in a silicon waveguide generates high-purity single photons in the telecom band.
• Demonstrated indistinguishability of photons emitted from the G center.
• Confirmed the artificial atom approach for single-photon generation in silicon.

Conclusions:

• G centers in silicon act as viable artificial atoms for quantum light sources.
• This work overcomes a major hurdle in silicon-based photonic quantum technologies.
• The demonstrated source is suitable for building scalable photonic quantum networks and processors.