Abstract: We review the concepts of temporal modes (TMs) in quantum optics, highlighting Roy Glauber's crucial and historic contributions to their development, and their growing importance in quantum information science. TMs are orthogonal sets of wave packets that can be used to represent a multimode light field. They are temporal counterparts to transverse spatial modes of light and play analogous roles - decomposing multimode light into the most natural basis for isolating statistically independent degrees of freedom. We discuss how TMs were developed to describe compactly various processes: superfluorescence, stimulated Raman scattering, spontaneous parametric down conversion, and spontaneous four-wave mixing. TMs can be manipulated, converted, demultiplexed, and detected using nonlinear optical processes such as three-wave mixing and quantum optical memories. As such, they play an increasingly important role in constructing quantum information networks.
Biography: Michael Raymer is Knight Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Emeritus, at the University of Oregon. He was the founding director of the Oregon Center for Optical, Molecular and Quantum Science. His research is in the area of nonlinear quantum optics. His group pioneered the field of quantum state tomography in 1993. With Chris Monroe of the University of Maryland, he initiated and led a two-year national effort involving academics and industry leaders to lobby the US government to support research in quantum information science and technology as a national priority [1]. This effort culminated in Dec. 2018, when Congress and the President passed the National Quantum Initiative Act, which authorized up to $1.275B to support Quantum Information Science [2].
Read More