Measuring the higher-order phonon statistics in a nanogram volume of superfluid helium (recording)
Speaker: Professor Jack Harris
Affiliation: Yale University, USA
Abstract
We detect the individual sideband photons produced by an optomechanical device consisting of a nanogram of superfluid helium confined in a cavity. We use the photon-counting data to probe the phonon-phonon correlations (up to fourth order, and for both normal-ordering and anti-normal-ordering) in a single acoustic mode of the superfluid. The data is consistent the assumption that the acoustic mode is in a thermal state with mean phonon number ~ 1. We also show that the acoustic mode can be driven to a coherent amplitude corresponding to several thousand phonons with no decrease in the purity of the acoustic state. We will discuss a number of applications of these results, including to the distribution of entanglement over kilometer-scale optical fiber networks.
About Physics Seminars
The weekly Physics Seminar series focuses on a broad range of physics research within SMP, along with frequent presentations from visiting researchers. Seminars are usually scheduled for 1.00pm on Tuesdays.
The talks are typically more specialised than a colloquium but are often attended by staff and PhD students across a broad range of areas. Speakers are thus encouraged to include introductory material in the talks.
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