Conditional preparation of single photons using parametric downconversion: a recipe for purity

P J Mosley, J S Lundeen, B J Smith, I A Walmsley
2008 New Journal of Physics  
In an experiment reported recently [Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 133601 (2008)], we demonstrated that, through group velocity matched parametric downconversion, heralded single photons can be generated in pure quantum states without spectral filtering. The technique relies on factorable photon pair production, initially developed theoretically in the strict collinear regime; focusing - required in any experimental implementation - can ruin this factorability. Here we present the numerical model used
more » ... design our single photon sources and minimize spectral correlations in the light of such experimental considerations. Furthermore, we show that the results of our model are in good agreement with measurements made on the photon pairs and give a detailed description of the exact requirements for constructing this type of source.
doi:10.1088/1367-2630/10/9/093011 fatcat:i4xdu7j4wrfdtavtd7f6rzpbly