{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/31191"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/31191","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"Efficient quantum optical state engineering and applications","abstract":"Over a century after the modern prediction of the existence of individual particles of light by Albert Einstein, a reliable source of this simple quantum state of one photon does not exist. While common light sources such as a light bulb, LED, or laser can produce a pulse of light with an average of one photon, there is (currently) no way of knowing the number of photons in that pulse without first absorbing (and thereby destroying) them. Spontaneous parametric down-conversion, a process in which one high-energy photon splits into two lower-energy photons, allows us to prepare a single-photon state by detecting one of the photons, which then heralds the existence of its twin. This process has been the workhorse of quantum optics, allowing demonstrations of a myriad of quantum processes and protocols, such as entanglement, cryptography, superdense coding, teleportation, and simple quantum computing demonstrations. All of these processes would benefit from better engineering of the underlying down-conversion process, but despite significant effort (both theoretical and experimental), optimization of this process is ongoing. The focus of this work is to optimize certain aspects of a down-conversion source, and then use this tool in novel experiments not otherwise feasible. Specifically, the goal is to optimize the heralding efficiency of the down-conversion photons, i.e., the probability that if one photon is detected, the other photon is also detected. This source is then applied to two experiments (a single-photon source, and a quantum cryptography implementation), and the detailed theory of an additional application (a source of Fock states and path-entangled states, called N00N states) is discussed, along with some other possible applications.","abstract_html":"Over a century after the modern prediction of the existence of individual particles of light by Albert Einstein, a reliable source of this simple quantum state of one photon does not exist. While common light sources such as a light bulb, LED, or laser can produce a pulse of light with an average of one photon, there is (currently) no way of knowing the number of photons in that pulse without first absorbing (and thereby destroying) them. Spontaneous parametric down-conversion, a process in which one high-energy photon splits into two lower-energy photons, allows us to prepare a single-photon state by detecting one of the photons, which then heralds the existence of its twin. This process has been the workhorse of quantum optics, allowing demonstrations of a myriad of quantum processes and protocols, such as entanglement, cryptography, superdense coding, teleportation, and simple quantum computing demonstrations. All of these processes would benefit from better engineering of the underlying down-conversion process, but despite significant effort (both theoretical and experimental), optimization of this process is ongoing. The focus of this work is to optimize certain aspects of a down-conversion source, and then use this tool in novel experiments not otherwise feasible. Specifically, the goal is to optimize the heralding efficiency of the down-conversion photons, i.e., the probability that if one photon is detected, the other photon is also detected. This source is then applied to two experiments (a single-photon source, and a quantum cryptography implementation), and the detailed theory of an additional application (a source of Fock states and path-entangled states, called N00N states) is discussed, along with some other possible applications.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["McCusker, Kevin"],"institution":"University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"Ph.D.","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Physics","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Kwiat, Paul G.","DeMarco, Brian L.","Ceperley, David M.","Abbamonte, Peter M."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2012,"date_issued":"2012-05-22T00:34:31Z","date_published":"2012-05-22T00:34:31Z","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:30Z","subjects":["Single-photon source","down-conversion","quantum cryptography","linear optical quantum computing"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Copyright 2012 by Kevin McCusker. All rights reserved."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://hdl.handle.net/2142/31191","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Kwiat, Paul G.","DeMarco, Brian L.","Ceperley, David M.","Abbamonte, Peter M."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["McCusker, Kevin"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2012-05-22T00:34:31Z","2012-05"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Physics"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Single-photon source","down-conversion","quantum cryptography","linear optical quantum computing"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2012 by Kevin McCusker. All rights reserved."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["http://hdl.handle.net/2142/31191"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Over a century after the modern prediction of the existence of individual particles of light by Albert Einstein, a reliable source of this simple quantum state of one photon does not exist. While common light sources such as a light bulb, LED, or laser can produce a pulse of light with an average of one photon, there is (currently) no way of knowing the number of photons in that pulse without first absorbing (and thereby destroying) them. Spontaneous parametric down-conversion, a process in which one high-energy photon splits into two lower-energy photons, allows us to prepare a single-photon state by detecting one of the photons, which then heralds the existence of its twin. This process has been the workhorse of quantum optics, allowing demonstrations of a myriad of quantum processes and protocols, such as entanglement, cryptography, superdense coding, teleportation, and simple quantum computing demonstrations. All of these processes would benefit from better engineering of the underlying down-conversion process, but despite significant effort (both theoretical and experimental), optimization of this process is ongoing. The focus of this work is to optimize certain aspects of a down-conversion source, and then use this tool in novel experiments not otherwise feasible. Specifically, the goal is to optimize the heralding efficiency of the down-conversion photons, i.e., the probability that if one photon is detected, the other photon is also detected. This source is then applied to two experiments (a single-photon source, and a quantum cryptography implementation), and the detailed theory of an additional application (a source of Fock states and path-entangled states, called N00N states) is discussed, along with some other possible applications.","Item withdrawn by Mark Zulauf (zulauf@illinois.edu) on 2012-03-28T16:22:23Z Item was in collections: University of Illinois Theses & Dissertations (ID: 1) No. of bitstreams: 12 bibliography.bib: 64313 bytes, checksum: b6cd86d5ff742f0bb82e44575c6a52d4 (MD5) entropy_calc.tex: 3041 bytes, checksum: 6354135593acb55f94646cddbf559b74 (MD5) source_perf.tex: 12580 bytes, checksum: 2c94ca0be2eba780d802c7b991dd72ab (MD5) spdc_calc.tex: 5317 bytes, checksum: c233012b4935e72db35f2a344be4cdd9 (MD5) experimental.tex: 9523 bytes, checksum: d76ea9fab7eaf3692bdeede18f76b8e3 (MD5) cryptography.tex: 46169 bytes, checksum: c3ebbf0facb2f7b64ddf1763a16d1239 (MD5) fockandnoonstatesource.tex: 20795 bytes, checksum: fb5ea819e89eb4415c65b7dccf02a01d (MD5) singlephotonsource.tex: 19777 bytes, checksum: 7297a2a44c72741fbec2a3b54aaa4f0d (MD5) coupling.tex: 39646 bytes, checksum: b4670f9afdd7e5c8658566e44963c7cb (MD5) introduction.tex: 8459 bytes, checksum: cf9c8983bac90c4c3369de03874da6fa (MD5) thesis.tex: 3942 bytes, checksum: 7997eabebc4761c06d5da17518138ecd (MD5) McCusker_Kevin.pdf: 4214314 bytes, checksum: b95fa0da97dbcee3564ca9c900cc4549 (MD5)","Made available in DSpace on 2012-05-22T00:34:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 13 McCusker_Kevin.pdf: 4214699 bytes, checksum: ed299cc12126096a24c8ee17b1e23839 (MD5) bibliography.bib: 64313 bytes, checksum: b6cd86d5ff742f0bb82e44575c6a52d4 (MD5) entropy_calc.tex: 3041 bytes, checksum: 6354135593acb55f94646cddbf559b74 (MD5) source_perf.tex: 12580 bytes, checksum: 2c94ca0be2eba780d802c7b991dd72ab (MD5) spdc_calc.tex: 5317 bytes, checksum: c233012b4935e72db35f2a344be4cdd9 (MD5) experimental.tex: 9523 bytes, checksum: d76ea9fab7eaf3692bdeede18f76b8e3 (MD5) cryptography.tex: 46169 bytes, checksum: c3ebbf0facb2f7b64ddf1763a16d1239 (MD5) fockandnoonstatesource.tex: 20795 bytes, checksum: fb5ea819e89eb4415c65b7dccf02a01d (MD5) singlephotonsource.tex: 19777 bytes, checksum: 7297a2a44c72741fbec2a3b54aaa4f0d (MD5) coupling.tex: 39646 bytes, checksum: b4670f9afdd7e5c8658566e44963c7cb (MD5) introduction.tex: 8459 bytes, checksum: cf9c8983bac90c4c3369de03874da6fa (MD5) thesis.tex: 3942 bytes, checksum: 7997eabebc4761c06d5da17518138ecd (MD5) license.txt: 4064 bytes, checksum: eb6301e52cc12e875b0b7c369adc5a3f (MD5)"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Efficient quantum optical state engineering and applications"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Kwiat, Paul G.","DeMarco, Brian L.","Ceperley, David M.","Abbamonte, Peter M."],"dc:creator":["McCusker, Kevin"],"dc:date":["2012-05-22T00:34:31Z","2012-05"],"dc:description":["Over a century after the modern prediction of the existence of individual particles of light by Albert Einstein, a reliable source of this simple quantum state of one photon does not exist. While common light sources such as a light bulb, LED, or laser can produce a pulse of light with an average of one photon, there is (currently) no way of knowing the number of photons in that pulse without first absorbing (and thereby destroying) them. Spontaneous parametric down-conversion, a process in which one high-energy photon splits into two lower-energy photons, allows us to prepare a single-photon state by detecting one of the photons, which then heralds the existence of its twin. This process has been the workhorse of quantum optics, allowing demonstrations of a myriad of quantum processes and protocols, such as entanglement, cryptography, superdense coding, teleportation, and simple quantum computing demonstrations. All of these processes would benefit from better engineering of the underlying down-conversion process, but despite significant effort (both theoretical and experimental), optimization of this process is ongoing. The focus of this work is to optimize certain aspects of a down-conversion source, and then use this tool in novel experiments not otherwise feasible. Specifically, the goal is to optimize the heralding efficiency of the down-conversion photons, i.e., the probability that if one photon is detected, the other photon is also detected. This source is then applied to two experiments (a single-photon source, and a quantum cryptography implementation), and the detailed theory of an additional application (a source of Fock states and path-entangled states, called N00N states) is discussed, along with some other possible applications.","Item withdrawn by Mark Zulauf (zulauf@illinois.edu) on 2012-03-28T16:22:23Z Item was in collections: University of Illinois Theses & Dissertations (ID: 1) No. of bitstreams: 12 bibliography.bib: 64313 bytes, checksum: b6cd86d5ff742f0bb82e44575c6a52d4 (MD5) entropy_calc.tex: 3041 bytes, checksum: 6354135593acb55f94646cddbf559b74 (MD5) source_perf.tex: 12580 bytes, checksum: 2c94ca0be2eba780d802c7b991dd72ab (MD5) spdc_calc.tex: 5317 bytes, checksum: c233012b4935e72db35f2a344be4cdd9 (MD5) experimental.tex: 9523 bytes, checksum: d76ea9fab7eaf3692bdeede18f76b8e3 (MD5) cryptography.tex: 46169 bytes, checksum: c3ebbf0facb2f7b64ddf1763a16d1239 (MD5) fockandnoonstatesource.tex: 20795 bytes, checksum: fb5ea819e89eb4415c65b7dccf02a01d (MD5) singlephotonsource.tex: 19777 bytes, checksum: 7297a2a44c72741fbec2a3b54aaa4f0d (MD5) coupling.tex: 39646 bytes, checksum: b4670f9afdd7e5c8658566e44963c7cb (MD5) introduction.tex: 8459 bytes, checksum: cf9c8983bac90c4c3369de03874da6fa (MD5) thesis.tex: 3942 bytes, checksum: 7997eabebc4761c06d5da17518138ecd (MD5) McCusker_Kevin.pdf: 4214314 bytes, checksum: b95fa0da97dbcee3564ca9c900cc4549 (MD5)","Made available in DSpace on 2012-05-22T00:34:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 13 McCusker_Kevin.pdf: 4214699 bytes, checksum: ed299cc12126096a24c8ee17b1e23839 (MD5) bibliography.bib: 64313 bytes, checksum: b6cd86d5ff742f0bb82e44575c6a52d4 (MD5) entropy_calc.tex: 3041 bytes, checksum: 6354135593acb55f94646cddbf559b74 (MD5) source_perf.tex: 12580 bytes, checksum: 2c94ca0be2eba780d802c7b991dd72ab (MD5) spdc_calc.tex: 5317 bytes, checksum: c233012b4935e72db35f2a344be4cdd9 (MD5) experimental.tex: 9523 bytes, checksum: d76ea9fab7eaf3692bdeede18f76b8e3 (MD5) cryptography.tex: 46169 bytes, checksum: c3ebbf0facb2f7b64ddf1763a16d1239 (MD5) fockandnoonstatesource.tex: 20795 bytes, checksum: fb5ea819e89eb4415c65b7dccf02a01d (MD5) singlephotonsource.tex: 19777 bytes, checksum: 7297a2a44c72741fbec2a3b54aaa4f0d (MD5) coupling.tex: 39646 bytes, checksum: b4670f9afdd7e5c8658566e44963c7cb (MD5) introduction.tex: 8459 bytes, checksum: cf9c8983bac90c4c3369de03874da6fa (MD5) thesis.tex: 3942 bytes, checksum: 7997eabebc4761c06d5da17518138ecd (MD5) license.txt: 4064 bytes, checksum: eb6301e52cc12e875b0b7c369adc5a3f (MD5)"],"dc:identifier":["http://hdl.handle.net/2142/31191"],"dc:language":["en"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2012 by Kevin McCusker. All rights reserved."],"dc:subject":["Single-photon source","down-conversion","quantum cryptography","linear optical quantum computing"],"dc:title":["Efficient quantum optical state engineering and applications"],"dc:type":["text"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Physics"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph.D."],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:30Z"}