Restricted Research - Award List, Note/Discussion Page
Fiscal Year: 2023
1521 The University of Texas at Arlington (143409)
Principal Investigator: Michael Vasilyev,vasilyev@uta.edu,(817) 272-1224
Total Amount of Contract, Award, or Gift (Annual before 2011): $ 800,000
Exceeds $250,000 (Is it flagged?): Yes
Start and End Dates: 9/1/22 - 8/31/25
Restricted Research: YES
Academic Discipline: Department of Electrical Engineering
Department, Center, School, or Institute: none
Title of Contract, Award, or Gift: ExpandQISE Track 1: Quantum information exchange over spatially-multimode and multi-core optical fibers
Name of Granting or Contracting Agency/Entity:
National Science Foundation (NSF)
CFDA Link: NSF
47.049
Program Title:
Expanding Capacity in Quantum Information Science and Engineering (ExpandQISE)
CFDA Linked: Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Note:
(SAM Category 1.1.1.) Growing the capacity of quantum links interconnecting future quantum computers, quantum repeaters, and quantum sensor nodes is of paramount importance for Quantum Information Science and Engineering (QISE). In the presence of unavoidable optical fiber losses, the only way to grow the quantum information exchange rate at a given distance is to increase the number of degrees of freedom (modes) over which the information is transmitted. While polarization and frequency / time modes have already received a lot of attention, one untapped resource for quantum information exchange over long fiber links is the spatial degrees of freedom of light in few-mode, multimode, and multi-core optical fibers. In this project, we propose to harness the spatial degrees of freedom of light for carrying the quantum information over significant distances in optical fibers. By extending the methods used in classical space-division-multiplexing (SDM) to the quantum domain, we will develop several types of high-capacity quantum communication links, ranging from a set of totally independent spatial quantum channels to links maintaining full spatial coherence across many fiber modes or cores for transmission of quantum information encoded in high-dimensional spatial Hilbert space. Existing efforts on using few-mode fibers (FMFs) and multi-core fibers (MCF) in quantum applications have been limited either to mere co-propagating a single quantum channel along with classical channels in different modes or cores of the fiber, or to using a small number of cores to transmit up to d = 4 dimensional single photons over short (up to 2 km) distances. In contrast, by using a unified systematic approach to real-time characterization and inversion of the input-output transfer matrix of optical fiber, we will enable the delivery of high-dimensional qubits (qudits) over metroscale (tens of kms) distances, dramatically increasing the quantum communication capacity / rate. The developed techniques will also enable the transmission of spatially-broadband quantum states (quantum images) over km-scale lengths of multimode fiber (MMF), which can be useful in quantum sensing and metrology applications. In addition to applications of the developed high-capacity quantum links in quantum communication, computing, and sensing, the customized spatial-mode properties of the fibers developed during the work on this project may find potential use in generation of extremely non-classical tri-partite quantum states (e.g., GHZ state) through reverse third-harmonic generation. The proposed project will pair a minority-serving institution (University of Texas at Arlington, or UTA) that only has a minor level of QISE engagement but possesses significant expertise in classical optical communications and spatial-mode manipulation, with well-established productive QISE research effort at Northwestern University (NU). Through collaborative work and student exchange, the UTA students will learn from NU colleagues the quantum state generation and detection techniques, as well as quantum communication protocols, while NU students will learn the SDM communication techniques from their UTA counterparts. The students will interact with industrial partners (Corning, Fujitsu, Furukawa, Chiral Photonics) to develop customized FMFs, MCFs, and fiber in/out couplers. The developed methods will be field-tested over installed fibers between NU’s Evanston and Chicago campuses, in Verizon’s DFW-area network, and with various FMFs and MCFs installed in the city of L’Aquila (Italy). This work, along with the planned broad-public and K-12 outreach activities, will help establish UTA as a center of emerging and productive QISE research community in North Texas area. The co-PIs will engage undergraduate students in QISE through REU efforts and already have a strong track record in attracting female and minority REU students into their labs.
Discussion: No discussion notes