Correlated photon sources for quantum silicon photonics

In the rapidly advancing field of quantum technologies, integrated quantum photonics merges quantum mechanics with photonics, promising breakthroughs in communication, sensing, computing, and security. This doctoral thesis investigates the generation of correlated photons via spontaneous four-wave mixing (sFWM) on silicon-based platforms. Through a comparative analysis of various intramodal and intermodal sources, the research focuses on two main areas: applications in sensing within the 2 μm region and the development of sources and other integrated structures in the visible-near infrared region for quantum algorithms, such as variational quantum eigensolver and boson sampler. For sensing, the study enhances quantum ghost spectroscopy to enable efficient gas detection using non-degenerate intermodal silicon sFWM. In the context of quantum simulation, silicon-nitride-based integrated photonic structures were realized to generate and manipulate quantum light within a photonic integrated circuit. Additionally, a proof-of-concept implementation of a two-qubit SWAP test in silicon nitride material showcased significant potential in quantum machine learning.