Bidirectional interconversion of microwave and light with thin-film lithium niobate
Abstract
Superconducting cavity electro-optics presents a promising route to coherently convert microwave and optical photons and distribute quantum entanglement between superconducting circuits over long-distance. Strong Pockels nonlinearity and high-performance optical cavity are the prerequisites for high conversion efficiency. Thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) offers these desired characteristics. Despite significant recent progresses, only unidirectional conversion with efficiencies on the order of 10−5 has been realized. In this article, we demonstrate the bidirectional electro-optic conversion in TFLN-superconductor hybrid system, with conversion efficiency improved by more than three orders of magnitude. Our air-clad device architecture boosts the sustainable intracavity pump power at cryogenic temperatures by suppressing the prominent photorefractive effect that limits cryogenic performance of TFLN, and reaches an efficiency of 1.02% (internal efficiency of 15.2%). This work firmly establishes the TFLN-superconductor hybrid EO system as a highly competitive transduction platform for future quantum network applications.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Jul 22, 2021
- Source ID
- 10.1038/s41467-021-24809-y
Entities
People
- Ayed Al Sayem
- Chang-Ling Zou
- Hong X Tang
- Likai Yang
- Linran Fan
- Mingrui Xu
- Risheng Cheng
- Sihao Wang
- Wei Fu
- Yuntao Xu
Organizations
- Army Research Office
- David and Lucile Packard Foundation
- Office of Basic Energy Sciences
- Office of Emerging Frontiers and Multidisciplinary Activities