Multimode spontaneous parametric down-conversion in a lossy medium

Abstract

We study the process of multimode spontaneous parametric down–conversion (SPDC) in a lossy, one-dimensional waveguide. We propose a description using first-order correlation functions (CF) in the fluorescence fields, as a very fruitful and easy approach providing us with complete information about the final multimode state. We formulate the equation of the evolution of the multimode CF along the crystal using four characteristic length scales. We solve it analytically in the one mode case and numerically in the multimode case. We capture simultaneous effects of three-wave mixing with ultrashort pump, linear propagation and attenuation, and we are able to divide the evolution into three stages and predict it qualitatively. We find that losses do not destroy the quantum properties of SPDC but stabilize the final state.

Keywords:

• multimode spontaneous parametric down-conversion
• squeezed states
• Gaussian states of light
• dissipative dynamics
• first-order correlation functions

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge insightful discussions with Konrad Banaszek, Czesław Radzewicz and Jan Chwedeńczuk for careful proofreading of our manuscript, as well as financial support from a Polish Government scientific Grant (2007–2009).