PhoW | Photon High Way - Integrated single-photon sources: crossing the chasm

Summary
Optical quantum technologies—the use of the quantum properties of light to benefit from quantum-enhanced performances in communications, computation, simulation and sensing—require highly efficient single photon sources. Such devices are difficult to fabricate and today’s sources present an efficiency intrinsically limited to few percents. Within the framework of the ERC StG QD-CQED, the PI team developed a new generation of single photon sources based on semiconductor quantum dots in cavities that are more than an order of magnitude more efficient. However, the technology is currently only accessible to quantum optics highly-trained specialists and big research facilities with enough resources to acquire the expensive optical collection setup as well as the highly stabilized cryostats required to benefit from the source performances.
The objective of this project is to develop an affordable prototype of a cryo-cooled plug-and-play single photon source. Such prototype is a critical step to allow crossing the chasm toward the single-photon source industrialization. To do so, we will integrate the photon source devices in a robust architecture, providing self-optical alignment through direct and monolithic fibre coupling. We will develop a customized cryo-cooler with the necessary packaging for the source integration. We will conduct detailed testing of the full prototype's robustness and stability to multiple cooling cycles. We will finally develop operation procedures and electrical feedback controls to allow for plug-and-play operation by non-specialists. The project also deals with all IPR measures and includes discussions with industrial partners for short-term commercialization.
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More information & hyperlinks
Web resources: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/789463
Start date: 01-04-2018
End date: 30-09-2019
Total budget - Public funding: 147 463,00 Euro - 147 463,00 Euro
Cordis data

Original description

Optical quantum technologies—the use of the quantum properties of light to benefit from quantum-enhanced performances in communications, computation, simulation and sensing—require highly efficient single photon sources. Such devices are difficult to fabricate and today’s sources present an efficiency intrinsically limited to few percents. Within the framework of the ERC StG QD-CQED, the PI team developed a new generation of single photon sources based on semiconductor quantum dots in cavities that are more than an order of magnitude more efficient. However, the technology is currently only accessible to quantum optics highly-trained specialists and big research facilities with enough resources to acquire the expensive optical collection setup as well as the highly stabilized cryostats required to benefit from the source performances.
The objective of this project is to develop an affordable prototype of a cryo-cooled plug-and-play single photon source. Such prototype is a critical step to allow crossing the chasm toward the single-photon source industrialization. To do so, we will integrate the photon source devices in a robust architecture, providing self-optical alignment through direct and monolithic fibre coupling. We will develop a customized cryo-cooler with the necessary packaging for the source integration. We will conduct detailed testing of the full prototype's robustness and stability to multiple cooling cycles. We will finally develop operation procedures and electrical feedback controls to allow for plug-and-play operation by non-specialists. The project also deals with all IPR measures and includes discussions with industrial partners for short-term commercialization.

Status

CLOSED

Call topic

ERC-2017-PoC

Update Date

27-04-2024
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EU-Programme-Call
Horizon 2020
H2020-EU.1. EXCELLENT SCIENCE
H2020-EU.1.1. EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
ERC-2017
ERC-2017-PoC