Materials scientists exploring the efficiency of photons as information carriers have developed a model that explains how the efficacy of these light particles changes at higher wavelengths. Their discovery could have a major impact on the development of a much-anticipated technological breakthrough: quantum communication networks.
Today’s optical fibers are capable of transmitting photons (single particles of light) at the wavelengths used in telecommunications with minimal loss. In a quantum system, photons function like bits in a classical computer.
What is the relationship between light and the Internet?
The quantum internet does not yet exist, but it is expected to be similar to a quantum computer network, transmitting information in the form of quantum bits, or qubits. These qubits are particles in a quantum state, allowing them to contain more information than just the 0 or 1 values of classical computer bits.
As Gizmodo previously reported, the quantum internet will function not much differently than the internet you access through your current browser. But the hypothetical technology should allow information to be encrypted with greater security than information on the Internet today, and would use the rules of quantum mechanics to achieve this.
What did the researchers find?
In their new paper published last month APL Photonics— Physicists have proposed a model outlining the role of electron-photon coupling in single-photon emitters. Their work suggests ways to improve the efficiency of these photon emitters.
“Atoms are constantly vibrating, and these vibrations consume light emission,” Chris Van de Walle, a materials scientist at UC Santa Barbara and co-author of the paper, said in a university news release. “So instead of emitting photons, defects may cause atoms to vibrate, reducing luminous efficiency. “
The research team noted that they do not believe that a Goldilocks single-photon emitter has been discovered, but they do believe that its transmission energy is about 1.5 electron volts.
“Given the higher efficiencies achievable at shorter wavelengths, we suggest that if telecommunications wavelengths are required for optical fiber transmission, quantum frequency conversion should be considered alongside direct power generation,” the team wrote.
“Careful selection of host materials and atomic-level engineering of vibrational properties are two promising ways to overcome inefficiencies,” said Mark Turiansky, a researcher at the University of California, Santa Barbara and the project’s principal investigator. ) said in the same press release.
Another way to get around the lower efficiency, the team writes, is to couple to a photonic cavity, a tool that could be used to “open up frequency bands that prohibit the propagation of electromagnetic waves, regardless of the direction of propagation in space,” as follows: Another team released it into IEEE.
We are still a long way from a quantum network, but it is based on a project over the past decade. In early 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy released a blueprint for “Building a National Quantum Internet,” which, in addition to secure quantum bulletins, could upgrade quantum computing and help existing sensor networks.
Don’t hold your breath waiting for the quantum future—you’ll turn blue—but know that today’s fundamental research in materials and computer science is laying the foundation for an entirely new way of communicating.
