Volume 62, number 3 OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS 1 May 1987

OBSERVATION OF S U B - P O I S S O N I A N L I G H T IN PARAMETRIC D O W N C O N V E R S I O N

J.G. RARITY, P.R. TAPSTER and E. JAKEMAN

Royal Signals and Radar Establishment, Malvern, Worcestershire WR14 3PS, UK

Received 25 November 1986; revised manuscript received 27 January 1987

We report the first observation of sub-poissonianphoton statistics for light generated by the use of a detection triggeredoptical
shutter in parametric downconversion. A normalised second factorial moment of the photon counting distribution of 0.42 has
been achieved with a pre-detection Fano factor of 0.984.

The generation of light with properties that cannot
be predicted without quantizing the Maxwell field is
of interest both from a fundamental point of view
and in the context of improved measurement accu-
racy [ 1,2]. Various proposals have been made for the
use of squeezed states in signal processing [ 3,4 ] and
interferometry [ 5 ], whilst the more readily appreci-
ated photon antibunching and sub-poissonian statis-
tics would also appear to have useful practical
applications [ 6,7 ] and certainly interesting experi-
ments on the fundamental nature of light can be
envisaged [ 8,9 ]. Thus there is currently a great deal
of effort being devoted to devising experiments which
generate non-classical light. Earlier experiments have
shown some success in achieving a small degree of
antibunching or small reduction in photon counting
fluctuations below that expected for a Poisson pro-
cess [ 10-13 ], while recent squeezing experiments
have also produced sub-poissonian effects [14],
These experiments are based on a variety of mecha-
nisms ranging from single atom resonance fluores-
cence to the Franck-Hertz effect and no doubt other
proposals made in the literature are currently being
tested [ 15-18 ]. In recent papers the use of optical
shutters to generate non-classical light in parametric
downconversion was proposed [ 19 ], evaluated [ 20]
and small antibunching effects observed in a prelim-
inary experimental investigation [ 13 ]. In this paper
a modified version of the experiment is described
which yields light with significantly reduced factorial
moments by comparison with those o f a Poisson dis-
tribution, and a discernable reduction in Fano factor
(i.e. shot noise variance). These experiments exploit
the fact that two identical trains of photons are pro-
duced in a suitably configured parametric downcon-
version apparatus and use detection of photons in one
train to optically gate photons in the other train.
The potential of this approach for noise reduction
is large because the source is partially collimated.
Previous experimental realisations of sub-poisson-
ian sources [ 11,12] emit into 4n steradians and
detection efficiencies are limited by the geometry of
the collection optics.
We emphasise here that we have created a sub-
poissonian light source which then, on detection,
gives the rise to sub-poissonian photoelectron statis-
tics. Large apparent noise reductions have also been
seen in closed loop shutter experiments [ 19,21 ] but
in such systems the noise reduced light is not avail-
able for use. Such experiments can be analysed using
semi-classical theories [ 22 ]. In contrast we note that
this experiment is the first practical demonstration
of the use of a quantum non-demolition measure-
ment [ 16] of photon number to reduce the shot noise
of a source. Furthermore this source is in principle a
source of localised one-photon states as discussed in
refs. [ 8 ] and [ 9 ]. In these previous experiments, one-
photon states were inferred by post-detection coin-
cidence gating while here we utilise an optical shutter
to select single photons and introduce a dead time
between shutter open events to produce an anti-
bunched and sub-poissonian photon beam. Such a

201
Volume 62, number 3 OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS
TRIGSERCHANNEL
S PHOTODIOOE
F-----
I ~ SHUTTER
CRYSTAL ~ F-] N, [~--]==
OPTICAL~ / I F~I CHANNEL I
PULSE I
II Iil~
===-. i ] I
CORRELATOR~
Fig. 1. Schematicdiagram of apparatus.
one-photon source is suitable for amplification to a
(higher intensity) n-photon source using a suitable
optical amplification scheme [ 17 ].
The principle of the experiment can be understood
from the schematic diagram shown in fig. 1 which is
a modified version of the configuration investigated
previously by Walker and Jakeman [ 13,19,20]. A
birefringent non-linear crystal arranged for non-
degenerate parametric downconversion is illumi-
nated by a UV laser source. Splitting of incident UV
photons takes place within the non-linear crystal and
the pairs of angularly resolved red photons so pro-
duced are observed by the (photon counting) trigger
and signal detectors. At the trigger detector an elec-
tronic deadtime ZD is introduced so that detection
events in this channel are at least TD apart. When each
of these events is registered a shutter is opened for a
short time t in the signal channel. An optical delay is
included before the shutter in this channel to com-
pensate for electronic and shutter response times, etc.
Thus only the partners of events actually registered
in the trigger channel should be observed in the sig-
nal channel. In principle this overcomes the problem
of random partnerless events arising in the signal
channel due to the low efficiency of the trigger chan-
nel detector, which considerably reduced the non-
classical effects observed in the earlier experiment
[ 13 ]. The ideal signal is thus a 0-1 random variable.
In practice, there is always the chance of observing
further events in the signal channel during the finite
open time t. In order to investigate this effect we sup-
pose that the number of open intervals per sample
time Tis Nwith t<< T, ZD" Assuming for the moment
202
1 May 1987
that the signal detector is 100% efficient the number
of counts per sample in the signal channel is given by
n=N(l+m), (1)
where m is drawn from a Poisson distribution of
mean ( 1 - r h ) / ~ t , rh being the trigger detector effi-
ciency and/~ the ideal detection rate of pairs in the
I
I
absence of shutters etc. It is not difficult to show that
the normalised second factorial moment of the pho-
tocount n can be expressed in the form
n (2) = <n(n- 1 ) >/<n> 2
<N(N-1)>
<N> 2
_(m> l + - -<m> 2 + < m >
X 1+ ( l + < m > ) 2 _ ] (2)
<N> ( l + <m>)2 •
This quantity is not affected by the low efficiency of
the detection system in the signal channel. The
reduction in measured signal variance over the con-
ventional Poisson variance, the Fano factor F, is
however dependent on signal channel quantum effi-
ciency. By definition
F=(Varn)/<n>=l+ <n>(n(2)- 1) , (3)
where <n> = r / 2 ( N ) (1 + <m> ) and n (2) is given by
eq. (2). In the current experiment detector effi-
ciency is only 2% so that even if the predetection Fano
factor is small an observed Fano factor of 0.98 is to
be expected at best. On the other hand the second
factorial moment is minimised by choosing T < zD
when the first term in eq. (2) vanishes. Since from
the theory of deadtimes [ 23,24 ]
<N> = r h R T / ( l +rh/~rD) we can write in this case
(25)
n(2) l+y ( 1 ) (4)
- y. 1 - l+yt(l_~l)2/~hr D
with y = qIRrD and 7* = rh/~ T. Clearly, for small n (2)
we need TD,~ T, yt]'CD<<rh/(1 --rll ), with y of order 1
to 5. Hence a high trigger channel efficiency r/l and
short gate time t are desirable. Note that in the above
treatment, failure to capture partner events in either
channel due to inefficiencies in the optics will reduce
Volume 62, number 3 OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS
the effective efficiencies rh and ~/2 appearing in eqs.
(3) and (4).
In the experiment, a KD*P crystal illuminated by
a helium/cadmium laser (lasing at 325 nm wave-
length) was used; tilted until the red down-con-
verted photons could be observed separated in
direction by approximately 10 degrees (crystal axis
at approximately 60 degrees to the incident UV
beam). For maximum trigger channel efficiency a
silicon avalanche photodiode (APD: RCA type
30921S) was used. Single photon counting was
achieved by biasing the APD beyond breakdown and
passively quenching the photoelectron triggered ava-
lanches with a 330 k,Q series resistor [26]. Suitable
discriminator circuitry, measuring across a further
small (50 12) series resistance, was used to produce,
as output, a train of standardised photoelectron
pulses. The APD was cooled to a constant tempera-
ture, typically - 3 degree Celsius, using a thermo-
electric cooler. When operated 25 V beyond break-
down a dark count rate of about 12 kHz was meas-
ured. At this relatively high over-voltage the device
quantum efficiency has reached a saturation value
around 25% (at these wavelengths) and count rate
drift due to temperature fluctuation (upto + / - 0 . 5
degrees Celsius) is negligible.
The optical delay consisted of 170 m of multimode
optical fibre, of core diameter 50/tin and numerical
aperture (NA) 0.23 (measured at 830 nm), produc-
ing a delay of 0.9 #s. Light was launched into this
fibre using a 0.2 NA microscope objective placed 30
cm from the crystal. At the output end of the fibre a
× 15 magnification system transferred an image of
the fibre end to a fast acousto-optical switch (Auto-
mates et Automatismes type AAMT-08). The first
order Bragg spot could be switched on after a delay
of about 0.6/is with a rise time faster than 120 ns
(10% to 90% points). An extinction ratio better than
250:1 was obtained on using an aperture to select out
this first order beam. The first order image of the fibre
end was then reimaged onto the photocathodes of two
cooled conventional photon counting photomulti-
plier (PMT) systems (Malvern Instruments type
RF313) via a pellicle beamsplitter. Photon counting
PMT's were used because of their intrinsically low
dark count. The standardised pulse outputs from the
PMT's and the APD discriminator could be fed to a
digital correlator (Malvern Instruments K7023). The
1 May 1987
correlator operates as a multichannel delayed coin-
cidence counter when used in cross-correlation mode
at its shortest sample time (50 ns, also the deadtime
of the discriminator circuitry). Conjugate photon
trains were selected by fibre input and trigger detec-
tor apertures combined with long wavelength trans-
mitting colour glass filters (cut-off below 600 nm
wavelength), to remove UV flare and fluorescence.
Aperture positions were optimised by maximising the
coincidence count rates between the two channels
(PMT versus APD) with the shutter held open. The
mean coincidence count rate g is given by
c= ~/1 ~/2/~, (5)
and using the mean count rates in the trigger
fit=rhk, and signal fi=r/2/~ detectors the quantum
efficiencies ql and q2 can be measured. Optimum
values obtained using this apparatus were q~ =0.09
with q2 = 0.0006. This suggests optical and alignment
losses greater than a factor of 2 in the trigger channel
(theoretical r/l ~0.25) and a factor of I0 loss in the
fibre and shutter (PMT quantum efficiency=0.02,
alignment loss × 2, beamsplitter × 2).
After alignment the shutter-open-pulse delay was
adjusted to match the fibre-optic delay and the dead-
time between shutter open events introduced. The
second factorial moment n (2) and the autocorrela-
tion function of the signal channel light were esti-
mated from the normalised cross-correlation
gtx 2) ( z ) of the PMT outputs,
<nl(0) n2(z) >T
g~(~) =
(n, >r <n2 >T
=g(2)(r), r#0,
=~/(2)T, ~=0,
n~ and n2 are respectively photocounts from the
detectors in sample time T, g(2) (z) is the normalised
intensity autocorrelation of the light and n~r2) is the
second factorial moment measured with sample time
T. This well known procedure removes all problems
associated with correlated afterpulsing and deadtime
in the PMT's [28,29]. At the low count rates meas-
ured (am q2) negligible distortion is expected from
the single bit (by multibit) multiplication carried out
in the correlator [ 27 ]. The zero delay time point was
accessed using an external delay circuit synchronised
203
Volume 62, n u m b e r 3 OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS 1 M a y 1987

RESULT 1 accumulated over long periods (of order 24 hr) by

TD = 20#s averaging shorter (half hour to one hour) experi-
1.1
ments to avoid problems due to long-term laser drift.
g(2) (1") Detector dark counts (5-10 cps) contributed signif-
• 9 • •
1.0
• • 2~0J. icantly to the results shown despite cooling the pho-
0.9
tocathodes to below 3 degrees Celsius.
T #S A summary of the results including dark count
O.fl correction, comparison with theory and estimated
0.7
Fano factors are shown in table 1. The post detection
Fano factors were calculated assuming a single detec-
tor could be used (i.e., count rates including dark
count were summed) while predetection assumed no
beamsplitter and PMT absolute quantum efficiency
RESULT 2
TD = 40~s of 0.020+0.004 [30].
g(2)('r) 1.1 Clearly the reduction of the Fano factors below 1
].C is statistically significant but not large in magnitude,
even predetection. Primarily this degradation is due
0.9~

T ,us
to the losses in the signal channel amounting to an
0.8 equivalent transmission coefficient of 0.05. The
major causes of this are: limited diffraction effi-
02
ciency of the acousto-optic switch (transmission
around 0.3), fibre losses (transmission including
1.1 launch and collection optics around 0.5) and align-
g(2)(T) •

1.0 • • • • • ment losses ( > 0 . 5 ) . Quoted acousto-optic diffrac-

O.
Fig. 2. Normalised correlation function of signal channel counts
as a function of delay time r.
to the correlator sample time clock. We re-emphasise
here that the correlator is not synchronised to detec-
tion events in the trigger channel.
Two typical experimental results are shown in fig.
2 along with a control result where the crystal and
laser were replaced by a simple tungsten filament light
source attenuated to similar brightness. In result 1
the shutter-open-width was made as short as possible
( t ~ 150 ns) with some loss in efficiency. This allowed
a deadtime of 20/zs and sample time of 19/ts to be
used. Antibunching evidenced by a positive zero time
slope in the correlation function is clearly seen. As
g(2)(0) ( - n (z)) is below 1 the photon statistics are
also sub-poissonian. A longer shutter open time
(t=0.5 /~s) led to better efficiencies but smaller
effects, as in result 2, (ZD=40 /tS, T = 37/~S). Count
rates were low ( ( n ) ~ r/2) hence all results were
tion efficiencies for well collimated beams are greater
T, p.s than 80%. A trade off between switching speed and
diffraction efficiency occurs due to the use of the high
numerical aperture multimode fibre. A monomode
delay fibre optimised for use around 650 nm would
allow better collimation, hence diffraction effi-
ciency, as well as possibly reducing fibre losses. Elec-
tro-optic switching (with nanosecond switching time)
could be used with polarisation preserving mono-
mode fibres. Alignment losses appear to be due pri-
marily to filter band edge absorption and
photomultiplier quantum efficiency fall-off at long
wavelengths as crystal tilt, hence dispersion, is at
present not large enough to ensure that the apertures
limit the bandwidth of the detected light. Use of
smaller apertures along with more laser power and a
more optimal choice of crystal axis tilt could reduce
these losses. In principle, the total signal channel loss
can be reduced to below 50% [ 25 ] indicating achiev-
able predetection Fano factors below 0.5. The low
intensity reported here is primarily limited by laser
power and shutter switching speed (versus effi-
ciency). There are at least three orders of magnitude
to be gained in intensity before the limits of elec-

204
Volume 62, number 3 OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS 1 May 1987

trooptic shutter technology are reached.

o
No useful noise reduction will be achieved without
higher quantum efficiency detectors. We have already
O incorporated an experimental [26], high quantum
,,o
efficiency, avalanche photodiode detector in this
apparatus to improve results. Work is at present in
e~
O O o
progress [31 ] on an actively quenched photon
counting APD which can be cooled to reduce the high
6~ O
+1 C5 +1 dark count inherent in these devices when operated
at high quantum efficiency. In principle the quan-
tum efficiency of this type of device is only limited
by the analogue quantum efficiency of the APD
o~ +1 +1
o
,.d (around 0.85 at 830 nm).
In conclusion, we have clearly demonstrated a sub-
poissonian light source producing up to 1685 pho-
v
tons per second with a Fano factor of 0.985 and nor-
fl O malised second moments down to 0.42. This is
o
o. comparable with previous sub-poissonian sources
c5
[ 11,12] but as mentioned earlier the partial colli-
mation of the source should allow much larger vari-
O
c5 c5
O
+1 ance reduction in future. As yet the variance
+1 +1
,7 o
reduction is not large enough to be of practical use.
c5 Possible improvements to the apparatus, detailed
above, could significantly reduce this predetection
Fano factor (to below 0.5) with increased source
O
c5 c5 intensity (X 103), and the development of higher
+1 +1
Ul +1
o~ o
quantum efficiency photon counting detection sys-
c5 tems is underway. Finally, we note that variants on
this apparatus using high quantum efficiency ana-
O
logue detectors could be used to produce sub-pois-
,de5 ~c5 sonian (but not antibunched) light sources with
O
nanowatt to microwatt powers.
o oo ("4
c5.~ o~c5 o6eq
¢'q ~,1 ¢q o'~
2 We would like to acknowledge several useful dis-
cussions with E.R. Pike, R.G.W. Brown, J.S. Satch-
r~ N
0~ ell, K.D. Ridley and J.G. Walker during the course
of this work.
~, ::k 'r"

e~

References

i
U~ c5 O O
8
[1 ] D.F. Walls, Nature 306 (1983) 141.
[2] H. Paul, Rev. Mod. Phys. 54 (1982) 1061.
O [3] H.P. Yuen and J.H. Shapiro, IEEE Trans. Inform. Theory
o IT24 (1978) 657; IT26 (1980) 78.
o
[4] J.H. Shapiro, H.P. Yuen and J.A. Machado Mato, IEEE
[--r,o ¢q
Trans. Inform. Theory, IT25 (1979) 179.
[5] C.M. Caves, Phys. Rev. 23D (1983) 1693.
[6] C.K. Hong, S.R. Friberg and L. Mandel, Appl. Optics 24

205
Volume 62, number 3 OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS
(1979) 3877.
[ 7 ] E. Jakeman and J.G. Rarity, Optics Comm. 59 (1986) 219.
[8] C.K. Hong and L. Mandel, Phys. Rev. Lett. 56 (1986) 58.
[9] P. Grangier, G. Roger and A. Aspect, Europhys. Lett. 1
(1986) 173.
[ 10] H.J. KJmble, M. Dagenais and L. Mandel, Phys. Rev. Lett.
39 (1977) 691.
[ 11 ] R. Short and L. Mandel, Phys. Rev. Lett. 51 (1983) 384.
[ 12] M.C. Teich and B.E,A. Saleh, J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 2 (1985)
275.
[ 13] J.G. Walker and E. Jakeman, Optica Acta 32 (1985) 1303.
[14] R.E. Slusher, L.W. Holberg, B. Yurke, J.C. Mertz and J.F.
Valley, Phys. Rev. Lett. 55 (1985) 2409.
[ 15] B.E.A. Saleh and M.C. Teich, Optics Comm. 52 (1985) 429.
[ 16] N. Imoto, H.A. Hans and Y. Yamamoto, Phys. Rev. A 32
(1985) 2287.
[17] H.P. Yuen, Phys. Rev. Lett. 56 (1986) 2176.
[ 18 ] F. Capasso and M.C. Teich, Phys. Rev. Lett. 57 (1986) 1417.
[ 19 ] J.G. Walker and E. Jakeman, SPIE492, ECOOSA'84 (1984)
274.
[20] E. Jakeman and J.G. Walker, Optics Comm. 55 (1985) 219.
206
1 May 1987
[21] S. Machida and Y. Yamamoto, Optics Comm. 57 (1986)
290.
[22] J.H. Shapiro, M.C. Teich, B.E.A. Saleh, P. Kumar and G.
Saplakoglu, Phys. Rev. Lett. 56 (1986) 1136.
[23] E. Jakeman and J. Jefferson, Optica Acta 33 (1986) 557.
[24] J.W. Muller, Nucl. Inst. Meth. 117 (1974) 401.
[25] R.G.W. Brown, E. Jakeman, E.R. Pike, J.G. Rarity and P.
Tapster, Europhys. Lett. 2 (1986) 279.
[26] R.G.W. Brown, K.D. Ridley and J.G. Rarity, Appl. Optics
25 (1986) 4122.
[27] E. Jakeman, in: Photon correlation and light beating spec-
troscopy, eds. H.Z. Cummins and E.R. Pike (Plenum NY
and London, 1974) p. 75.
[28] F.T. Arecchi, M. Corti, V. Degiorgio and S. Donati, Optics
Comm. 3 (1971) 284.
[29] H.C. Burstyn, R.F. Chang and J.V. Sengers, Phys. Rev. Lett.
44 (1980) 410.
[30] J.G. Rarity, K.D. Ridley and P.R. Tapster, Appl. Optics,
submitted.
[ 31 ] R.G.W. Brown, R. Jones, K.D. Ridley and J.G. Rarity, Appl.
Optics, submitted.