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All-optical input-agnostic polarization transformer via experimental Kraus-map control

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Abstract

The polarization of light is utilized in many technologies throughout science and engineering. The ability to transform one state of polarization to another is a key enabling technology. Common polarization transformers are simple polarizers and polarization rotators. Simple polarizers change the intensity depending on the input state and can only output a fixed polarized state, while polarization rotators rotates the input Stokes vector in the 3D Stokes space. We experimentally demonstrate an all-optical input-agnostic polarization transformer (AI-APT), which transforms all input states of polarization to a particular state that can be polarized or partially polarized. The output state of polarization and intensity depends solely on setup parameters, and not on the input state, thereby the AI-APT functions differently from simple polarizers and polarization rotators. The AI-APT is completely passive, and thus can be used as a polarization controller or stabilizer for single photons and ultrafast pulses. To achieve this, we, for the first time, experimentally realize complete kinematic state controllability of an open single-qubit by Kraus maps put forth in Wu et al. (J Phys A 40:5681, 2007). The AI-APT may open a new frontier of partially polarized ultrafast optics.

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Data Availability Statement

This manuscript has no associated data or the data will not be deposited. [Authors’ comment: There are no associated data available.]

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Grant Number D19AP00043 under mentorship of Dr. Joseph Altepeter. J.M.L. is supported by the Louisiana Board of Regents’ Graduate Fellowship Program. R.T.G. also acknowledges funding from the U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR) under Grant N000141912374. D.I.B. is also supported by the U.S. Army Research Office (ARO) under Grant W911NF-19-1-0377. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of DARPA, ONR, ARO, or the U.S. Government. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Government purposes notwithstanding any copyright notation herein. The authors thank a Quantum editor for valuable discussion.

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  1. Wenlei Zhang and Ravi Saripalli have been contributed equally to this work.

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  1. Department of Physics and Engineering Physics, Tulane University, 6823 St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans, LA, 70118, USA

    Wenlei Zhang, Ravi Saripalli, Jacob Leamer, Ryan Glasser & Denys Bondar

  2. SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94305, USA

    Ravi Saripalli

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  1. Wenlei Zhang
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Zhang, W., Saripalli, R., Leamer, J. et al. All-optical input-agnostic polarization transformer via experimental Kraus-map control. Eur. Phys. J. Plus 137, 930 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/s13360-022-03104-9

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