Photon-pair generation based on superconductivity

Abstract

Superconductivity and optoelectronics have developed almost independently and had very rare interactions with each other in science and technologies. However recent interdisciplinary research opens up the potential for developing new optoelectronic devices. This review paper presents our recent theoretical and experimental demonstrations that superconductivity significantly modifies and accelerates photon generation processes. We have prepared superconducting light emitting diodes (LEDs) emitting at ∼1.6-µm optical-fiber communication band for the experimental demonstrations. This new-type LED operation is based on a unique physics related to Cooper-pair interband transition in a semiconductor, and further research leads to the solid-state simultaneously generated photon-pair sources for the potential application in quantum information and communication.