Printed nanofiber Bragg cavities for quantum optical sources

Quantum optics and photonics are key areas for advancing quantum information processing and have the potential to transform todays technology fundamentally. One important ingredient for this is to achieve precise control over the quantum state of light on the single quantum level. Such single quantum of light are called photons. However, current single photon sources have shortcomings in many properties, such as brightness, efficiency, and tunability, making them inefficient for quantum technology, as all these shortcomings reduce the highly needed control. This project aims to explore a new method for creating single photon sources that could meet all necessary performance requirements. This is done by developing a nano-printing process to create tiny optical elements on the surface of optical nanofibers. Traditionally, such structures are fabricated by an expesinve process where fast ions are used for milling the structure in the nanofibers surface. The new method developed here promises a faster and more reliable production method. The project will produce nanofibers and develop a nano-printing process that uses pattern transfer from a pre-patterned stamp. This involves either transferring material from the stamp to the fiber or imprinting the stamp`s structure into a polymer layer coating the fiber. By coupling organic molecule nanocrystals to the fiber to provide the photons, this hybrid approach aims to establish an ultra-bright source of single photons. Replacing complex ion beam steps with nano-print lithography offers a significant technological advancement in fabricating quantum optical elements. Beyond single photon sources, this project sets the groundwork for a nanofiber-integrated photonic platform that can include additional quantum optical elements, such as non-linear elements and interferometers. This platform, benefiting from the simplicity and alignment-free coupling of nano-print lithography, could lead to more complex and chip-integrated quantum systems in the future.