title: Telecom-Wavelength Atomic Quantum Memory in Optical Fiber for Heralded Polarization Qubits.
abstract: Polarization-encoded photons at telecommunication wavelengths provide a compelling platform for practical realizations of photonic quantum information technologies due to the ease of performing single qubit manipulations, the availability of polarization-entangled photon-pair sources, and the possibility of leveraging existing fiber-optic links for distributing qubits over long distances. An optical quantum memory compatible with this platform could serve as a building block for these technologies. Here we present the first experimental demonstration of an atomic quantum memory that directly allows for reversible mapping of quantum states encoded in the polarization degree of freedom of a telecom-wavelength photon. We show that heralded polarization qubits at a telecom wavelength are stored and retrieved with near-unity fidelity by implementing the atomic frequency comb protocol in an ensemble of erbium atoms doped into an optical fiber. Despite remaining limitations in our proof-of-principle demonstration such as small storage efficiency and storage time, our broadband light-matter interface reveals the potential for use in future quantum information processing.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Quantum Science and Technology, and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Jeongwan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.affiliation: Institute for Quantum Science and Technology, and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Erhan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Saglamyurek
authors.affiliation: Institute for Quantum Science and Technology, and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Marcel lí Grimau
authors.initials: Ml
authors.lastname: Puigibert
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, Colorado 80305, USA.
authors.forename: Varun
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Verma
authors.affiliation: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, California 91109, USA.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Marsili
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, Colorado 80305, USA.
authors.forename: Sae Woo
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Nam
authors.affiliation: Institute for Quantum Science and Technology, and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Oblak
authors.affiliation: Institute for Quantum Science and Technology, and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Tittel