Quantum Entanglement of Complex Structures of Photons

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xv

   PDF

2. Preamble

   • Robert Fickler

   Pages 1-4

3. Introduction and Theoretical Background

   • Robert Fickler

   Pages 5-33

4. Entanglement of High Angular Momenta

   • Robert Fickler

   Pages 35-59

5. Coincidence Imaging of Spatial Mode Entanglement

   • Robert Fickler

   Pages 61-75

6. Entanglement of Complex Photon Polarization Patterns in Vector Beams

   • Robert Fickler

   Pages 77-92

7. Conclusion and Outlook

   • Robert Fickler

   Pages 93-95

8. Back Matter

   Pages 97-104

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This thesis casts new light on quantum entanglement of photons with complex spatial patterns due to direct coincidence imaging. It demonstrates novel methods to generate, investigate, and verify entanglement of complex spatial structures.  Quantum theory is one of the most successful and astonishing physical theories. It made possible various technical devices like lasers or mobile phones and, at the same time, it completely changed our understanding of the world. Interestingly, such counterintuitive features like entanglement are an important building block for future quantum technologies. In photonic experiments, the transverse spatial degree of freedom offers great potential to explore fascinating phenomena of single photons and quantum entanglement. It was possible to verify the entanglement of two photons with very high quanta of orbital angular momentum, a property of photons connected to their spatial structure and theoretically unbounded. In addition, modern imaging technology was used to visualize the effect of entanglement even in real-time and to show a surprising property: photons with complex spatial patterns can be both entangled and not entangled in polarization depending on their transverse spatial position. 

• High angular momenta photons
• Orbital angular momentum of light
• Photon coincidence imaging
• Photon polarization entanglement
• Quantum entangled photons
• Transverse spatial modes

• Vienna Center for Quantum Science and Technology, University of Vienna / IQOQI Vienna, Vienna, Austria

  Robert Fickler

Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Ottawa (Canada)
Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Vienna (Austria)
PhD in Physics at the University of Vienna (Austria)
Study of Physics at the University of Ulm (Germany)
Masters thesis: "Cold single ions for the implantation in solid state devices with nanometre resolution"
Study of Philosphy at the University of Ulm (Germany)
Bachelor thesis: "The idea of realism in quantum physics"
Apprenticeship as an electronics engineer in Kempten, Allgäu (Germany).

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