Manipulating single-photons at will

−Application to quantum information and quantum metrology−

Abstract

Technologies such as the generation of the photons with desired states and the manipulation of quantum states of single photons are now becoming available. These technologies make it possible to realize not only quantum cipher communication but also ultrahigh sensitivity beyond the limit of laser light as well as optical lithography with resolution better than the diffraction limit. The current state of research in this field is overviewed along with our recent studies.