Experimental storage of photonic polarization entanglement in a broadband loop-based quantum memory

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Citation of Original Publication

Evans, C. J., C. M. Nunn, S. W. L. Cheng, J. D. Franson, and T. B. Pittman. “Experimental Storage of Photonic Polarization Entanglement in a Broadband Loop-Based Quantum Memory.” Physical Review A 108, no. 5 (November 16, 2023): L050601. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.108.L050601.

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©2023 American Physical Society

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Abstract

We experimentally study the ability of a broadband “loop-and-switch” type quantum memory device to store entanglement. We find that one active loop-based memory and one passive fiber delay line can be used to faithfully store two polarization-entangled photons and demonstrate a rudimentary entanglement distribution protocol. The entangled photons are produced by a conventional spontaneous parametric down-conversion source with center wavelengths at 780 nm and bandwidths of ∼10 THz, while the memory has an even wider operational bandwidth that is enabled by the weakly dispersive nature of the Pockels effect used for polarization-insensitive active switching. These results help demonstrate the utility of loop-based quantum memories for quantum networking applications.