Exploring the Quantum Optics of Chip Scale Lasers

A miniscule ring, made on a microchip like the one inside our phones, can transform a single laser beam into thousands with different colours. The resultant “micro resonator optical frequency combs” or "microcombs” are an emerging technology with massive potential. In particular, they offer a route to realise large-scale systems for scalable quantum computing and networking, in a tiny chip-scale platform that can be readily mass-manufactured. In conventional microcombs, numerous equally spaced laser frequencies are generated around the frequency of a single input laser. However, a whole new regime can be achieved by using two lasers with very different frequencies instead of one. Here the microcombs form with frequencies in between the two inputs and, unlike conventional microcombs, come in two distinct flavours. This project will explore the quantum optical characteristics of the newly discovered regime of microcombs. It is being performed in collaboration with researchers from the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and led by University of Auckland Associate Professor Miro Erkintalo.