Quantum States of Light for Precision Measurement and New Quantum Technologies

Quantum mechanics is the only theory known that accurately describes the microscopic world of atoms and subatomic particles. As humans seek greater precision, miniaturization and computational power, technologies based on quantum mechanics are the only way forward. Recent advances are creating vast opportunities for quantum technologies to enter mainstream societal applications, and also to strengthen national security, critically, given their transformational role in quantum sensing, computation, and cryptography. Development of new quantum technologies and a quantum-capable workforce are hugely important components of US competitiveness and national security. This project seeks to develop quantum systems that both probe fundamental quantum phenomena and enable practical applications in precision quantum-limited measurement, quantum sensing, and quantum information science. A cornerstone of quantum mechanics is uncertainty. Unlike the macroscopic, human-scale world, the quantum world is inherently uncertain. The laws of quantum physics preclude making perfect measurements; they are necessarily hindered by quantum noise, no matter how perfect the measuring (or computing) apparatus is. In this work, specially engineered quantum states of light — called squeezed states — are used to circumvent this fundamental and ubiquitous quantum noise in optical measurements by manipulating quantum uncertainty. Squeezed states of light, generated by nonlinear optical materials, have been used to improve the sensitivity of optical interferometers, such as gravitational-wave detectors. They are useful in any application where the measurement is dominated by quantum optical noise, e.g. microscopy, spectroscopy, imaging, optical communications, and quantum information processing, storage, and transfer. This project will create squeezed light sources in integrated photonic chips and study the fundamental physics of nonlinear optics and precision measurement at the nanoscale, while also deploying the nonlinearity to create new tools and make novel quantum devices with demonstrable quantum advantage. This progress in science is necessary to harness the full potential of the burgeoning quantum technosphere for society and security. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2608329 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Nergis Mavalvala | Institution: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, CAMBRIDGE, MA | Award Amount: $913,527 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2608329 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2608329.html