Computing with nonlinear and quantum optics

Developing energy efficient computing hardware is critical for deriving wide society benefit from advances in computation. This project will explore new concepts for optical computing hardware. In particular, we aim to build on recent advances in cavity nonlinear optics and intermediate scale quantum systems.

The former represents a unique nonlinear resource for optical architectures with a potential to be both energy efficient, due to its parametric nature, and scalable through manufacturability of photonic hardware. The latter provides opportunities for large computational capacity within modest physical systems.

In particular, we will consider novel encodings that use non-Gaussian quantum resources derived from measurement-based quantum processes, and we will study architectures based on multimode interferometry.

By combining these concepts, we aim to develop and demonstrate novel small-scale computing processors that contribute to the development of efficient architectures for future computation.