Noise limits on two-photon interferometric sensing

Abstract

When a photon interferes with itself while traversing a Mach-Zehnder inteferometer, the output port where it emerges is influenced by the phase difference between the interferometer arms. This allows for highly precise estimation of the path length difference (delay) but is extremely sensitive to phase noise. By contrast, a delay between the arms of the two-photon Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometer directly affects the relative indistinguishability of the photon pair, affecting the rate of recorded coincidences. This likewise allows for delay estimation; notably less precise but with the advantage of being less sensitive to perturbations of the photons' phase. Focusing on two-photon input states, we here investigate to what degree of noise Mach-Zehnder interferometry retains its edge over Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometry. We also explore the competing benefits of different two-photon inputs for a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, and under what parameter regimes each input performs best.

19 pages, 10 figures

References in corpus (6)

• Optimal Quantum Phase Estimation
• Quantum metrology with imperfect states and detectors
• Quantum Metrological Limits via a Variational Approach
• Optimal Quantum-Enhanced Interferometry
• Optical interferometry in the presence of large phase diffusion
• Parameter estimation of time and frequency shifts with generalized HOM interferometry

Cited by in corpus (3)

• Quantum metrology timing limits of the Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometer and of general two-photon measurements
• Quantum asymmetry and noisy multi-mode interferometry
• Semiparametric estimation in Hong-Ou-Mandel interferometry