Abstract

A source of single photons or entangled photon pairs is necessary for applications such as quantum cryptography and quantum computation protocols. Requirements of the source include that it operates at 1550nm to be compatible with optical fibers, has sub-Poissonian statistics to avoid photon splitting attacks, and is electrically driven so as to not require bulky or complex optics.

Semiconductor quantum dot devices are promising candidates for such a source, as they have been shown to have sub-Poissonian and can be electrically driven [1]. InAs/GaAs quantum dots emit at around 900nm, though longer emission wavelengths can be achieved by using large quantum dots and strain reducing layers [2]. InP based quantum dot lasers reach 1550nm, so InP based devices with InAs/InP quantum dot devices are being developed.

In this talk I will present a paper by Müller et al on the realisation of a quantum LED operating at around 1550nm [3].

[1] Yuan, Z., Kardynal, B.E., Stevenson, R.M., Shields, A.J., Lobo, C.J., Cooper, K., Beattie, N.S., Ritchie, D.A. and Pepper, M., 2002. Electrically driven single-photon source. science, 295(5552), pp.102-105.

[2] Zinoni, C., Alloing, B., Monat, C., Zwiller, V., Li, L.H., Fiore, A., Lunghi, L., Gerardino, A., De Riedmatten, H., Zbinden, H. and Gisin, N., 2006. Time-resolved and antibunching experiments on single quantum dots at 1300 nm. Applied Physics Letters, 88(13), p.131102.

[3] Müller, T., Skiba-Szymanska, J., Krysa, A.B., Huwer, J., Felle, M., Anderson, M., Stevenson, R.M., Heffernan, J., Ritchie, D.A. and Shields, A.J., 2018. A quantum light-emitting diode for the standard telecom window around 1,550 nm. Nature communications, 9(1), p.862.