Storing light pulses can boost quantum computing

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: A new way of storing and 'echoing' pulses of light allows bursts of laser to work as a flexible optical memory and potentially assist in extending the range of quantum information systems.

A team at the ARC Centre of Excellence in Quantum-Atom Optics has demonstrated how photon echoes can be used to create a quantum memory device - meaning that pulses of light can be captured, stored and then released on demand.

"Light can be a fantastic medium for transferring lots of information very quickly, but it doesn't like to stay in one place for long," explains ARC team member Ben Buchler.

"This is the problem of optical memory - how to keep the information coded on light in one place so you can access it again later. One method is to slow the light down so it's as good as frozen in place for a while," says Buchler.

"The way we've explored is to absorb the light in a cloud of atoms which you can then manipulate to release the light at will."

The research outlines how the team has managed to store laser pulses with efficiencies above 40 per cent using its technique, says an ARC release.

These findings were published in Nature.

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