Generation of a macroscopic entangled coherent state using quantum memories in circuit QED

Realization of Quantum Swap Gate and Generation of Entangled Coherent States

The cross fusion of quantum mechanics and information science forms quantum information science. Quantum logic gates and quantum entanglement are very important building blocks in quantum information processing. In this paper, we propose one-step schemes for realizing quantum swap gates and generating two-mode entangled coherent states via circuit QED. In our scheme, due to the adiabatic elimination of the excited state of the qutrit under the condition of large detuning, the decoherence of the spontaneous emission of the qutrit can be ignored. The fidelity of the quantum swap gate remains at a very high level. In addition, we also explore the nonclassical properties of two-mode entangled coherent states prepared in our scheme by addressing the second-order correlation function and intermodal squeezing. In particular, two classes of entangled coherent states demonstrate distinct entanglement and nonclassical behavior.

Long-distance twin-field quantum key distribution with entangled sources

Twin-field quantum key distribution (TFQKD), using single-photon-type interference, offers a way to exceed the rate-distance limit without quantum repeaters. However, it still suffers from photon losses and dark counts, which impose an ultimate limit on its transmission distance. In this Letter, we propose a scheme to implement TFQKD with an entangled coherent state source in the middle to increase its range, as well as comparing its performance under coherent attacks with that of TFQKD variants. Simulations show that our protocol has a theoretical distance advantage of 400 km. Moreover, the scheme has great robustness against the misalignment error and finite-size effects. Our work is a promising step toward long-distance secure communication and is greatly compatible with future global quantum networks.

Efficient scheme for creating a W-type optical entangled coherent state

W-type optical entangled coherent states have important applications in quantum communication. Previous works require performing measurement in the preparation of such W states. We here propose an efficient scheme for creating a W-type optical entangled coherent state without measurement. This scheme employs a setup composed of three microwave cavities and a superconducting flux coupler qutrit. Because no measurement is required, the W state can be generated deterministically. In addition, the system complexity is greatly reduced because of using only one qutrit to couple the three cavities. Numerical analysis shows that within current experimental technology, the W state can be prepared with high fidelity. This scheme is universal and can be extended to create the W-type optical entangled coherent state, by using three microwave or optical cavities coupled via a three-level natural or artificial atom.

Ergodicity and Born's rule in an entangled two-qubit Bohmian system

We study the Bohmian trajectories of a generic entangled two-qubit system, composed of coherent states of two harmonic oscillators with noncommensurable frequencies and focus on the relation between ergodicity and the dynamical approach to Born's rule for arbitrary distributions of initial conditions. We find that most Bohmian trajectories are ergodic and establish the same invariant ergodic limiting distributions of their points for any nonzero amount of entanglement. In the case of strong entanglement the distribution satisfying Born's rule is dominated by chaotic-ergodic trajectories. Therefore, P→|Ψ|^{2} for an arbitrary P_{0}. However, when the entanglement is weak the distribution satisfying Born's rule is dominated by ordered trajectories, which are not ergodic. In this case the ergodic trajectories do not, in general, lead to the distribution of Born's rule, therefore P=|Ψ|^{2} is guaranteed only if P_{0}=|Ψ_{0}|^{2}. Consequently, the existence of chaotic and ergodic Bohmian trajectories does not always lead to the dynamical establishment of Born's rule.

Multipartite quantum entanglement creation for distant stationary systems

We present efficient protocols for creating multipartite Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) and W states of distant stationary qubits. The system nonuniformity and/or the non-ideal single-photon scattering usually limit the performance of entanglement creation, and result in the decrease of the fidelity and the efficiency in practical quantum information processing. By using linear optical elements, errors caused by the system nonuniformity and non-ideal photon scattering can be converted into heralded loss in our protocols. Thus, the fidelity of generated multipartite entangled states keeps unchanged and only the efficiency decreases. The GHZ state of distant stationary qubits is created in a parallel way that its generation efficiency considerably increases. In the protocol for creating the W state of N distant stationary qubits, an input single photon is prepared in a superposition state and sent into N paths parallelly. We use the two-spatial-mode interferences to eliminate the "which path" single-photon scattering "knowledge". As a result, the efficiency of creating the N-qubit W state is independent of the number of stationary qubits rather than exponentially decreases.

Improving long-distance distribution of entangled coherent state with the method of twin-field quantum key distribution

The twin-field quantum key distribution (TFQKD) protocol has garnered considerable attention in quantum communication because it overcomes the well-known fundamental limit of the secret key rate without quantum repeaters. In this study, we employ this scheme to demonstrate the long-distance distribution of entangled coherent state (ECS), which has not been addressed in the existing literature. We show a scheme for the distribution of ECS with a yield of η, where η is the total efficiency of the whole transmission link. Compared to the cat-state based scheme, the success probability for fidelity is enhanced by 1.86 to 11.54 times in our new scheme, where the ECS is |ψ_ECS(α = 2.0)〉 and the fixed fidelity (F) ranges from 0.99 to 0.75. The performance of our scheme in the presence of realistic on-off photon detector has also been investigated. Our work provides the application of TFQKD method toward continuous variable entanglement distribution and we believe that its application to other quantum information processing protocols are worth investigation in the near future.

Nearly maximal violation of the Mermin-Klyshko inequality with multimode entangled coherent states

Entangled coherent states for multiple bosonic modes, also referred to as multimode cat states, not only are of fundamental interest but also have practical applications. The nonclassical correlation among these modes is well characterized by the violation of the Mermin-Klyshko inequality. We here study Mermin-Klyshko inequality violations for such multi-mode entangled states with rotated quantum-number parity operators. It is shown that the Mermin-Klyshko signal obtained with these operators can approach the maximal value even when the average quantum number in each mode is only 1, and the inequality violation exponentially increases with the number of entangled modes. This is in distinct contrast with the framework based on displaced parity operators, with which a nearly maximal Mermin-Klyshko inequality violation requires the size of the cat state to be increased by about 15 times.

Creation of superposition of arbitrary states encoded in two high-Q cavities

The principle of superposition is a key ingredient for quantum mechanics. A recent work [Phys. Rev. Lett.116, 110403 (2016)10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.110403] has shown that a quantum adder that deterministically generates a superposition of two unknown states is forbidden. Here we consider the implementation of the probabilistic quantum adder in the 3D cavity-transmon system. Our implementation is based on a three-level superconducting transmon qubit dispersively coupled to two cavities. Numerical simulations show that high-fidelity generation of the superposition of two coherent states is feasible with current circuit QED technology. Our method also works for other physical systems such as two optical cavities coupled to a three-level atom or two nitrogen-vacancy center ensembles interacted with one three-level superconducting flux qubit.

Generation of entangled Schrödinger cat state of two macroscopic mirrors

We propose a scheme to generate the macroscopic entangled Schrödinger cat state of two mechanical resonators in a hybrid optomechanical system by introducing modulated photon-hopping interaction between two cavities. We show that the obtained entangled cat state possesses large average phonon number and the two base vectors of which are nearly orthogonal, thus causing the high degree of entanglement. To justify the robust of the scheme, the dissipation of the system and the noise from the environment are considered. It shows that the high fidelity between the obtained state and the target state can be achieved in the presence of dissipation and thermal noise within our parameter regions, which suggests that our state-generation proposal is feasible.

Witnessing quantum entanglement in ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy centers coupled to a superconducting resonator

A hybrid quantum device consisting of three ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy centers (NVEs) whose spins are collectively coupled to a superconducting coplanar waveguide resonator is shown to enable the generation of controllable tripartite macroscopic entangled states. The density matrix of such NVEs can be encoded to recast a three-qubit system state, which can be characterized in terms of the entanglement witnesses in relation to the Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) states. We identify the parameter space within which the generated entangled states can have an arbitrarily large overlap with GHZ states, indicating an enhanced entanglement in the system.