The efficient generation of entangled photons at telecom wavelength is essential for the success of many quantum communication protocols and the development of fiber-based quantum networks. Entangled light can be generated by solid-state quantum emitters with naturally low fine-structure splitting, such as highly symmetric $\mathrm{In}\mathrm{As}$ quantum dots (QDs) grown on (111)-oriented surfaces. The incorporation of these QDs into optical cavities is crucial to achieve sufficient signal intensities for applications but has so far shown major complications. In this work, we present droplet epitaxy of telecom-wavelength $\mathrm{In}\mathrm{As}$ QDs within an optical cavity on a vicinal ($2^{\circ }$ miscut) $\mathrm{Ga}\mathrm{As}$(111)$A$ substrate. We show a remarkable enhancement of the photon extraction efficiency compared to previous reports together with a reduction of the density that facilitates the isolation of single spectral lines. Moreover, we characterize the exciton-fine-structure splitting and employ numerical simulations under the framework of the empirical-pseudopotential and configuration-interaction methods to study the impact of the miscut on the optical properties of the QDs. We demonstrate that the presence of the miscut steps influences the polarization of the neutral excitons and introduces a preferential orientation in the ${\mathrm{C}}_{3\mathrm{v}}$ symmetry of the surface.

The transformation theory provides a distinct method for designing parameters in spatial dimensions, facilitating intriguing functions such as cloaking, concentrating, and rotating. However, with the introduction of temporal dimension, the transformation theory becomes particularly elusive because coordinate transformations apply only to static parameters. Here, we develop the transformation thermotics for designing spatiotemporal metamaterials. Specifically, we consider the transient heat-conduction equation with dynamic thermal parameters, whose transformation principles are theoretically derived and numerically confirmed. We further uncover spatiotemporal thermal cloaking, concentrating, and rotating with transformation thermotics as model applications. In contrast to conventional static parameters, dynamic parameters may provide unique opportunities for achieving thermal functions with the additional asymmetric feature. Our spatiotemporal scheme has remarkable advantages in dynamic heat regulation and provides insights into particle or plasma diffusion and wave propagation.

Rapid injection of spin polarization into an ensemble of nuclear spins is a problem of broad interest, spanning dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) to quantum information science. We report on a strategy to boost the spin-injection rate by exploiting electrons that can be rapidly polarized via high-power optical pumping. We demonstrate this in a model system of nitrogen-vacancy center electrons injecting polarization into a bath of ${}^{13}\mathrm{C}$ nuclei in diamond. We deliver $>20$ W of continuous, nearly isotropic, optical power to the sample, constituting a substantially higher power than in previous experiments. Through a spin-ratchet polarization transfer mechanism, we show boosts in spin-injection rates by over 2 orders of magnitude. Our experiments elucidate bottlenecks in the DNP process caused by rates of electron polarization, polarization transfer to proximal nuclei, and spin diffusion. This work demonstrates opportunities for rapid spin injection employing nonthermally generated electron polarization, and has relevance to a broad class of experimental systems, including in DNP, quantum sensing, and spin-based MASERs (microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation).

We use Raman spectroscopy to probe in situ the hydration reaction of a foamed mineral binder, here gypsum plaster. We show the strong effect of the mixing process used for foaming on the hydration kinetics. On the contrary, we observe no effect of the cationic surfactant tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (TTAB) used as foaming agent and of the foam structure. By tuning the hydration time scale with a setting retardant (citric acid) and measuring in parallel the characteristic bubble radius in the foam, we show that hydration kinetics control the arrest of the bubble-size evolution in the fresh foam and the final pore size in the set gypsum.

Surpassing the Nyquist sampling limit to avoid aliasing distortion is an important issue for the task of time-varying parameter estimation. To achieve this goal, we propose a high-precision time-varying parameter estimation scheme based on split detection and postmodulation of light instead of postprocessing of data. Theoretical analysis demonstrates its advantage of surpassing the Nyquist sampling limit and the avoidance of anti-aliasing distortion. In order to illustrate the feasibility, a numerical simulation based on the acceptance rejection sampling method is performed showing the noise robustness of the scheme in terms of correlation coefficient, root-mean-square error, and mean absolute error. Our scheme provides a method for function estimation.

Kerr parametric oscillators (KPOs), which can be implemented with superconducting parametrons possessing large Kerr nonlinearity, have been attracting much attention in terms of their applications to quantum annealing, universal quantum computation, and studies of quantum many-body systems. It is of practical importance for these studies to realize fast and accurate tunable coupling between KPOs in a simple manner. We develop a simple scheme of fast tunable coupling of KPOs with high tunability in speed and amplitude using the fast transitionless rotation of a KPO in the phase space based on the shortcuts to adiabaticity. Our scheme enables rapid switching of the effective coupling between KPOs, and can be implemented with always-on linear coupling between KPOs, by controlling the phase of the pump field and the resonance frequency of the KPO without controlling the amplitude of the pump field nor using additional drive fields and couplers. We apply the coupling scheme to a two-qubit gate, and show that our scheme realizes high gate fidelity compared with a purely adiabatic one, by mitigating undesired nonadiabatic transitions.

A multimode fiber represents the ultimate limit in miniaturization of imaging endoscopes. However, such a miniaturization usually comes as a cost of a low spatial resolution and a long acquisition time. Here we propose a fast superresolution-fiber-imaging technique employing compressive sensing through a multimode fiber with a data-driven machine-learning framework. We implement a generative adversarial network (GAN) to explore the sparsity inherent to the model and provide compressive reconstruction images that are not sparse in a representation basis. The proposed method outperforms other widespread compressive imaging algorithms in terms of both image quality and noise robustness. We experimentally demonstrate machine-learning ghost imaging below the diffraction limit at a sub-Nyquist speed through a thin multimode fiber probe. We believe that this work has great potential in applications in various fields ranging from biomedical imaging to remote sensing.

Bell nonclassicality of a single-photon superposition in two modes, often referred to as “nonlocality of a single photon,” is one of the most striking nonclassical phenomena discussed in the context of foundations of quantum physics. Here we show how to robustly violate local realism within the weak-field homodyne measurement scheme for any superposition of one photon with vacuum. Our modification of the previously proposed setups involves tunable beam splitters at the measurement stations, and the local oscillator fields significantly varying between the settings, optimally being on or off. As photon-number-resolving measurements are now feasible, we advocate for the use of the Clauser-Horne Bell inequalities for detection events using precisely defined numbers of photons. We find a condition for optimal measurement settings for the maximal violation of the Clauser-Horne inequality with weak-field homodyne detection, which states that the reflectivity of the local beam splitter must be equal to the strength of the local oscillator field. We show that this condition holds not only for the vacuum–one-photon qubit input state, but also for the superposition of a photon pair with vacuum, which suggests its generality as a property of weak-field homodyne detection with photon-number resolution. Our findings suggest a possible path to employ such scenarios in device-independent quantum protocols.

A numerical security proof technique is used to analyze the security of continuous-variable quantum key distribution (CV-QKD) protocols with phase-shift keying (PSK) modulation against collective attacks in the asymptotic limit. We argue that it is sufficient to consider protocols with a maximum of eight signal states and analyze different postselection strategies for protocols with four (QPSK) and eight (8PSK) signal states for untrusted ideal and trusted nonideal detectors. We introduce a cross-shaped postselection strategy, and show that both cross-shaped and radial and angular postselection clearly outperform a radial postselection scheme (and no postselection) for QPSK protocols. For all strategies studied, we provide analytical results for the operators defining the respective regions in phase space. We outline several use cases of postselection, which can easily be introduced in the data processing of both new and existing CV-QKD systems. Motivated by the high computational effort for error correction, we study the case when a large fraction of the raw key is eliminated by postselection and observe that this can be achieved while increasing the secure key rate. Postselection can also be used to partially compensate the disadvantage of QPSK protocols over 8PSK protocols for high transmission distances, while being experimentally less demanding. Finally, we highlight that postselection can be used to reduce the key rate gap between scenarios with trusted and untrusted detectors while relying on less assumptions on Eve’s power.

Due to its potential for implementing a scalable quantum computer, the multiqubit Toffoli gate lies in the heart of quantum information processing. In this paper, we demonstrate a multiqubit blockade gate with atoms arranged in a three-dimensional spheroidal array. The gate performance is greatly improved by the method of optimizing control-qubit distributions on the spherical surface via evolutionary algorithm, which leads to an enhanced asymmetric Rydberg blockade. This spheroidal configuration, not only preserves the dipole blockade energy well between arbitrary control-target pairs, which keeps the asymmetric blockade error at a very low level, but also manifests an unprecedented robustness to the spatial position variations, leading to a negligible position error. Taking account of intrinsic errors and using typical experimental parameters, we numerically show that a c${}_6$not Rydberg gate can be created with a fidelity of 0.992, which is only limited by the Rydberg state decays. Our protocol opens up a platform of higher-dimensional atomic arrays for achieving multiqubit neutral-atom quantum computation.

To determine the effect of depolarization and the critical thickness in improper-ferroelectric hexagonal-ferrite thin films, we investigate the polarization switching of a ferroelectric/dielectric bilayer in capacitor structures at 20 K. Experimentally, we show that the spontaneous polarization persists throughout the studied thickness range (3 to 80 unit cell), even with a thick (10-nm) dielectric layer, suggesting no practical thickness limit for applications. By fitting the effect of depolarization using the phenomenological theory, we show that the spontaneous polarization remains finite when the thickness of the ferroelectric layer approaches zero, providing a hint for the absence of critical thickness. We also find that the interfacial effects limit the multidomain formation and govern the polarization switching mechanisms.

A plasmonic based nanocircuit transplants the lumped property of classical electronic circuits to optical frequencies, providing a circuit paradigm for optics and photonics. To broaden the material and frequency selections, the concept of a waveguide metamaterial is applied to design lumped elements by utilizing the waveguide’s structural dispersion to emulate the natural material’s dispersion. Here, as an important application of the physics of waveguide metamaterials, a general type of impedance-matching network directly integrated with a waveguide is investigated for various matching occasions of guided waves, outperforming the classical ones using waveguide membranes. Three representative matching examples are analyzed to validate the feasibility, namely, transmission discontinuities, active power amplifiers, and antennas. The numerical and experimental results confirm the impedance-matching applications of the waveguide metamaterial and suggest the potential merits of low loss and low crosstalk for the proposed waveguide-integrated matching networks in terahertz integrated-circuit designs.

The spatial resolution of an optical fiber bundle is limited by the size of a mode propagating in an individual fiber, which can be as small as a single wavelength approximately $\lambda$ for conventional low-to-medium refractive-index optical fibers. High-refractive-index optical fiber bundles have a potential for the subwavelength-resolution imaging due to strong mode confinement in a fiber core, but they suffer from inconvenient image readout from the bundle output end, which is done by energy-inefficient near-field probes. To address this issue, this work introduces a tapered high-refractive-index terahertz (THz) optical fiber bundle. It comprises the subwavelength-diameter sapphire optical fibers, that are stacked tightly in the object plane to sample the near field with a subwavelength resolution. The fibers diverge from the object plane and, thus, stretch the captured near field for its further read out from the output bundle end using conventional diffraction-limited lens. Such a tapered fiber bundle was investigated numerically and then implemented experimentally at $0.33$ THz. The subwavelength resolution of this bundle was confirmed, and varies over its aperture and can be as high as $0.35\lambda$. The developed imaging principle allows the $\simeq 0.5\lambda$ Abbe resolution limit of a free-space focusing to be overcome and almost any common diffraction-limited optics for the near-field applications to be adapted.

Dual-comb interferometry is based on self-heterodyning two optical frequency combs, with corresponding mapping of the optical spectrum into the radio-frequency domain. The dual comb enables diverse applications, including metrology, fast high-precision spectroscopy with high signal-to-noise ratio, distance ranging, and coherent optical communications. However, current dual-frequency-comb systems are designed for research applications and typically rely on scientific equipment and bulky mode-locked lasers. Here we demonstrate a fully integrated power-efficient dual-microcomb source that is electrically driven and allows turnkey operation. Our implementation uses commercially available components, including distributed-feedback and Fabry-Perot laser diodes, and silicon-nitride photonic circuits with microresonators fabricated in commercial multiproject wafer runs. Our devices are therefore unique in terms of size, weight, power consumption, and cost. Laser-diode self-injection locking relaxes the requirements on microresonator spectral purity and $Q$ factor, so that we can generate soliton microcombs resilient to thermal frequency drift and with pump-to-comb sideband efficiency of up to 40% at mW power levels. We demonstrate down-conversion of the optical spectrum from 1400 to 1700 nm into the radio-frequency domain, which is valuable for fast wide-band Fourier spectroscopy, which was previously not available with chip-scale devices. Our findings pave the way for further integration of miniature microcomb-based sensors and devices for high-volume applications, thus opening up the prospect of innovative products that redefine the market of industrial and consumer mobile and wearable devices and sensors.

Surface acoustic waves (SAWs) coupled to quantum dots (QDs), trapped atoms and ions, and point defects have been proposed as quantum transduction platforms, yet the requisite coupling rates and cavity lifetimes have not been experimentally established. Although the interaction mechanism varies, small acoustic cavities with large zero-point motion are required for high efficiencies. We experimentally establish the feasibility of this platform through electro- and optomechanical characterization of tightly focusing, single-mode Gaussian SAW cavities at approximately 3.6 GHz on $\mathrm{Ga}\mathrm{As}$. We explore the performance limits of the platform by fabricating SAW cavities with mode volumes approaching $6{\lambda }^3$ and linewidths less than 1 MHz. Employing strain-coupled single $\mathrm{In}\mathrm{As}$ QDs as optomechanical intermediaries, we measure single-phonon optomechanical coupling rates $g_0\approx 2\pi \times 1.2$ MHz. Sideband scattering rates thus exceed intrinsic phonon loss, indicating the potential for quantum optical readout and transduction of cavity phonon states. To demonstrate the feasibility of this platform for low-noise ground-state quantum transduction, we develop a fiber-based confocal microscope in a dilution refrigerator and perform single-QD resonance fluorescence sideband spectroscopy at millikelvin temperatures. These measurements show conversion between microwave phonons and optical photons with sub-natural linewidths.

Topological insulators have attracted great interest in recent years because of their robust transports of topological boundary states. Usually, the topological boundary states are sharply localized at the boundaries, which limits the capacity of transmissions and the interfacing with existing bulk devices in applications. Here, based on the acoustic topological insulators with pseudospin, we realize topological heterostructures that host a pair of helical waveguide modes. With the freedom of width, the waveguide modes are of adjustable capacity of transmissions, and convenient for applications. The waveguide modes are revealed to be robust against disorders and structural defects. We also demonstrate the partition and beam collimation of the topological waveguide modes. These results pave a way to explore the topological transports in versatile designs of heterostructures for acoustic waves.

The manipulation of magnetism with a gate voltage is expected to lead to the realization of energy-efficient spintronics devices and high-performance magnetic memories. Exploiting magnetoionic effects under micropatterned electrodes in solid-state devices adds the possibility of modifying magnetic properties locally, in a nonvolatile and reversible way. Tuning magnetic anisotropy, magnetization and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction allows the modification “at will” of the dynamics of nontrivial magnetic textures such as skyrmions and chiral domain walls in magnetic race tracks. In this work, we illustrate efficient magnetoionic effects in a ferrimagnetic $\mathrm{Pt}$/$\mathrm{Co}$/$\mathrm{Tb}$/${\mathrm{Al}\mathrm{O}}_x$ stack using a ${\mathrm{Zr}\mathrm{O}}_2$ thin layer as a solid-state ionic conductor. When a thin layer of terbium is deposited on top of cobalt, it acquires a magnetic moment that aligns antiparallel to that of cobalt, reducing the effective magnetization. Below the micropatterned electrodes, the voltage-driven migration of oxygen ions in ${\mathrm{Zr}\mathrm{O}}_2$ toward the ferrimagnetic stack partially oxidizes the $\mathrm{Tb}$ layer, leading to the local variation not only of the magnetization, but also of the magnetic anisotropy and of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction. This leads to a huge increase in the domain wall velocity, which varies from 10 m/s in the pristine state to 250 m/s after gating. This nonvolatile and reversible tuning of the domain wall dynamics may lead to applications to reprogrammable magnetic memories or other spintronic devices.

A strong superconducting diode effect (SDE) is revealed in a thin superconducting film periodically nanostructured with magnetic dots. The SDE is caused by the current-activated dissipation mitigated by vortex-antivortex pairs (VAPs), which periodically nucleate under the dots, move and annihilate in the superconductor—eventually driving the system to the high-resistive state. Inversing the polarity of the applied current destimulates the nucleation of VAPs, the system remains superconducting up to far larger currents, leading to the pronounced diodic response. Our dissipative Ginzburg-Landau simulations detail the involved processes, and provide reliable geometric and parametric ranges for the experimental realization of such a nonvolatile superconducting diode, which operates in the absence of any applied magnetic field while being fluxonic by design.