Quantum Photonics

Photonics is the discipline of electrons and photons working in tandem to create new physics, new devices and new applications. This textbook employs a pedagogical approach that facilitates access to the fundamentals of quantum photonics. Beginning with a review of the quantum properties of photons and electrons, the book then introduces the concept of their non-locality at the quantum level.  It presents a determination of electronic band structure using the pseudopotential method, enabling the student to directly compute the band structures of most group IV, group III-V, and group II-VI semiconductors. The book devotes further in-depth discussion of second quantization of the electromagnetic field that describes spontaneous and stimulated emission of photons, quantum entanglement and introduces the topic of quantum cascade lasers, showing how electrons and photons interact in a quantum environment to create a practical photonic device.

This extended second editionincludes a detailed description of the link between quantum photon states and the macroscopic electric field.  It describes the particle qualities of quantum electrons via their unique operator algebra and distinguishable behavior from photons, and employs these fundamentals to describe the quantum point contact, which is the quantum analogue of a transistor and the basic building block of all nanoscopic circuits, such as electron interferometers.

Pearsall’s Quantum Photonics is supported by numerous numerical calculations that can be repeated by the reader, and every chapter features a reference list of state-of-the art research and a set of exercises. This textbook is an essential part of any graduate-level course dealing with the theory of nanophotonic devices or computational physics of solid-state quantum devices based on nanoscopic structures.

“Pearsall has merged most modern quantum devices, and quantum information with semiconductor physics. The chapter topics include electromagnetic field quantization, giving rise to spontaneous parametric down conversion, and multi-photon entanglement. There is also Bell’s theorem, local reality, and hidden variables. Each chapter has homework exercises making the book valuable for a course at the 1st year graduate level. A unique feature is that Pearsall presents a diorama of free-electron semiconductor bandstructure evolving into the actual band-structure as the pseudo-potentials are turned on 10 successive steps. He presents this for the 3 most important cases, Si, Ge, and GaAs. This is terrific for students. This book is very much needed, and covers the topics that students will care about in the coming years.” (Prof. Eli Yablonovitch, Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley)

“Quantum photonics is a welcome addition to graduate physics textbooks: it explores a number of topics that have become important in recent years, and for which it is very useful to find here a basic and pedagogical presentation.  I especially liked the parallel treatments of quantum photons and quantum electrons.  Instead of searching in the literature for separate entries, one finds here the main ideas for both bosons and fermions placed side by side, and explained in a very straightforward way. The book has also been very handy to introduce student trainees to various topics, such as two-dimensional electrons and modulation doping.” (Ulf Gennser, Centre for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, France)

“I enjoyed reading the chapter on pseudopotenial band structure calculations very much. It is difficult to make the step from the abstract equation to plotting the band structure using the pseudopotential method by writing your own code. With the help of the provided Matlab script, I was able to comprehend the method. The topic is difficult because many semiconductor books hide important details, such as presenting the algorithm as such. I think it is very helpful nowadays having books that come with scripts so that the readers can reproduce the plots. I have used this script and the lecture material on band structure calculations in my Quantum Physics Lecture at the Hochschule München.” (Stefan Birner, nextnano GmbH) 

“This book contains a rather unique, yet highly useful combination of topics. Starting from the behavior of electrons is semiconductor heterostructures, it extends to laser physics and quantum optics, focusing on the relevant properties for the “second quantum revolution”, whose applications we face today in quantum information technology. Relevant experiments on quantum interference are discussed both for photons and electrons, accompanied by a theoretical description using second quantization. All calculations are easy to follow also for experimentalists. Overall this is a very timely book on the physics necessary to understand semiconductor based quantum photonic devices. In addition it is a pleasure to read, offering also new perspectives on various topics.” (Prof. Dr. Manfred Helm, Director, Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR))

Thomas Pearsall has a distinguished career in photonic science and technology, where he has made major contributions to fiber-optic telecommunications and silicon photonics. A graduate of Cornell University, he worked in research at Thomson/CSF, and at Bell Labs for nearly two decades. In 1990, Pearsall was named Boeing-Johnson Chair and Professor at the University of Washington. From 1998 to 2002, he directed research on planar photonic crystals at Corning in Fontainebleau, France. Throughout his career, he has invented and developed the semiconductor materials,l asers, LEDs and photodetectors that are ubiquitous in optical fiber telecommunication networks around the globe. He has also designed and demonstrated key elements of silicon-based photonics, using strained-silicon and silicon-based photonic crystal materials.

In 2003, Pearsall started EPIC, The European Photonics Industry Consortium, which has been a leading contributor to the launch and the development of the European Technology Platform Photonics²¹. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and a Fellow of the IEEE.