Time-resolved double-slit interference pattern measurement with entangled photons.
The double-slit experiment strikingly demonstrates the wave-particle duality of quantum objects. In this famous experiment, particles pass one-by-one through a pair of slits and are detected on a distant screen. A distinct wave-like pattern emerges after many discrete particle impacts as if each particle is passing through both slits and interfering with itself. Here we present a temporally- and spatially-resolved measurement of the double-slit interference pattern using single photons. We send single photons through a birefringent double-slit apparatus and use a linear array of single-photon detectors to observe the developing interference pattern. The analysis of the buildup allows us to compare quantum mechanics and the corpuscular model, which aims to explain the mystery of single-particle interference. Finally, we send one photon from an entangled pair through our double-slit setup and show the dependence of the resulting interference pattern on the twin photon's measured state. Our results provide new insight into the dynamics of the buildup process in the double-slit experiment, and can be used as a valuable resource in quantum information applications.
Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Grudziadzka 5, 87-100 Torun, Poland.
Piotr
P
Kolenderski
Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, I-20133 Milano, Italy.
Carmelo
C
Scarcella
Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada.
Kelsey D
KD
Johnsen
Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada.
Deny R
DR
Hamel
Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada.
Catherine
C
Holloway
1] Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada [2] National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA.
Lynden K
LK
Shalm
Micro Photon Device S.r.l., Via Stradivari 4, I-39100 Bolzano, Italy.
Simone
S
Tisa
Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, I-20133 Milano, Italy.
Alberto
A
Tosi
Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada.
Kevin J
KJ
Resch
Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada.
Thomas
T
Jennewein