Quantum Radar with Undetected Photons
- Physics and Astronomy Colloquium
February 28, 2025 3:30 PM -
February 28, 2025 4:30 PM
PAIS 1100
- Host:
- Elohim Becerra
- Presenter:
- Diego Dalvit (LANL)
Quantum sensing promises to revolutionize sensing applications by employing quantum states of light or matter as sensing probes. Photons are the clear choice as quantum probes for remote sensing because they can travel to and interact with a distant target. Existing schemes are mainly based on the quantum illumination framework, which requires a quantum memory to store a single photon of an initially entangled pair until its twin reflects off a target and returns for final correlation measurements. Existing demonstrations are limited to tabletop experiments, and expanding the sensing range faces various roadblocks, including long-time quantum storage and photon loss and noise when transmitting quantum signals over long distances.
In this talk I will first describe the state-of-the-art in quantum imaging and sensing based on quantum illumination and quantum ghost imaging. Then I will introduce our novel quantum sensing framework “qCOMBPASS” (quantum frequency combs with path identity for remote sensing of signatures) that addresses the above-mentioned problems of existing quantum sensing methods. The proposed scheme is akin to a quantum radar based on entangled frequency comb pairs that uses path identity to detect/range/sense a remote target of interest by measuring pulses of one comb in the pair that never flew to target, but that contains target information “teleported” by quantum-induced coherence from the other comb in the pair that did fly to target but is not detected. Potential applications include detection and ranging of low-reflectivity objects, measurement of a remote target with precision beyond what is allowed classically, and discreet surveillance from space with low probability of being detected.
Reference: D.A.R. Dalvit, T.J. Volkoff, Y.-S. Choi, A.K. Azad, H.-T. Chen, and P.W. Milonni, Phys. Rev. X 14, 041058 (2024). Patent submitted and under review.
