2016/02/18 by Caspar Ockeloen-Korppi, C. F. Ockeloen-Korppi, E. Damskägg +9 · 3 citations
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Acoustics #Advanced MEMS and NEMS Technologies #Computer science #Mechanical and Optical Resonators #Microwave #Noise (video) #Optics #Optoelectronics #Phase noise #Photonic and Optical Devices #Physics #Quantum mechanics #cond-mat.mes-hall #quant-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevx.6.041024
published as Phys. Rev. X 6, 041024 (2016) · 6 pages + supplementary
arxiv created 2016/02/18 · openalex publication_date 2016/10/28 · arxiv updated 2016/11/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
High-gain amplifiers of electromagnetic signals operating near the quantum limit are crucial for quantum information systems and ultrasensitive quantum measurements. However, the existing techniques have a limited gain-bandwidth product and only operate with weak input signals. Here, we demonstrate a two-port optomechanical scheme for amplification and routing of microwave signals, a system that simultaneously performs high-gain amplification and frequency conversion in the quantum regime. Our amplifier, implemented in a two-cavity microwave optomechanical device, shows 41 dB of gain and has a high dynamic range, handling input signals up to 10 13 photons per second, 3 orders of magnitude more than corresponding Josephson parametric amplifiers. We show that although the active medium, the mechanical resonator, is at a high temperature far from the quantum limit, only 4.6 quanta of noise is added to the input signal. Our method can be readily applied to a wide variety of optomechanical systems, including hybrid optical-microwave systems, creating a universal hub for signals at the quantum level.