ORCA - towards an integrated noise-free quantum memory

Light is an ideal information carrier for quantum networks: its quantum properties are not degraded by noise in ambient conditions and it has a large information capacity owing to its high bandwidth. However, quantum technologies based on photonic networks have been hampered by the exponentially poor scaling of the underlying probabilistic quantum operations. Quantum optical memories, devices that store, manipulate, and release on- demand quantum light, have been identified as an indispensable network component, because they facilitate scalability. Noise-free operation of the memory is critical, since even small additional noise can render the memory classical by destroying the quantum character of the light. Here I introduce a new broadband quantum memory protocol - the off-resonant cas- caded absorption (ORCA) memory - that is inherently noise-free and operates in ambient conditions. I model ORCA theoretically, after which I characterise the classical perfor- mance of a proof-of-concept implementation in warm caesium vapour, using weak near- infrared coherent states. In order to verify quantum operation of the ORCA memory, I interface it with a broadband heralded single-photon source. I measure and compare the quantum statistics of the stored and retrieved light, observing for the first time their full preservation in a room-temperature atomic quantum memory. Finally, I make headway into integrating the ORCA vapour memory by investigating an alkali-filled hollow-core fibre platform. I use light-induced atomic desorption (LIAD) to demonstrate record- breaking alkali vapour densities in fibre, a prerequisite for efficient memory operation. Because of its technical simplicity and integrability, its high bandwidth and its low noise, ORCA provides a viable route towards next generation, photonic quantum network technologies.