Rare Earth Ion Quantum Devices
Summary
Rare earth ion (REI) doped materials cooled to cryogenic temperatures (>4K) offer enormous optical bandwidth with exceptionally narrow frequency resolution. These materials can exhibit optical linewidths in the kHz, while the overall material linewidth can span a Terahertz or more. This creates an extraordinary number of programmable spectral channels within a single spot in a material. Since the 1990s Spectrum Lab has been exploring the applications of these materials as signal processing devices. The properties of these rare earth ion doped materials promising platforms for high-capacity quantum memories, where highly multimodal quantum information can be stored, preserved, processed, and retrieved through precisely controlled light-matter interactions.
Capabilities
At Spectrum Lab we are investigating the applications of rare earth ion doped crystals
as quantum memories, quantum signal processors, and extreme bandwidth signal processors.
In order to serve these aims, our group brings together an interdisciplinary team
of scientists and engineers to advance this technology, our group therefore has a
has a wide range of capabilities including Cryogenics (3 Montana instruments closed
cycle cryostats), RF test and measurement ( VNA, AWG, RFSA, Real-Time Oscilloscope
at 50 GHz+), Quantum Optics (Sources, Quantum frequency conversion and single photon
counting), simulations of Material interactions, and traditional optical and microwave
system design.
Personnel
Dr. Owen Wolfe (owen.wolfe@montana.edu)
Dr. Joshua Dugre (joshuadugre@montana.edu)
Ector Ayala Diego (ectorayala@montana.edu)
Nathan Kuehl (nathan.kuehl2@montana.edu)
Graduate Researchers
Eric Pritchard, Ph.D, Physics
Grant Kirkland, M.Sc., Optics and Photonics
Undergraduate Researchers
Reece Hayes Undergraduate, Physics
Ansel Spitler Undergraduate, Electrical Engineering
Ava Arbogast Undergraduate, Mechanical Engineering / Electrical Engineering
Publications
- O. R. Wolfe, T. Sharpe, R. K. Mohan, and Z. W. Barber, “Demonstration of stimulated photon echo isolation using interferometric cancellation,” Opt. Lett., OL, vol. 44, no. 2, pp. 371–374, Jan. 2019, doi: 10.1364/OL.44.000371
- O. R. Wolfe, J. Dugre, G. Kirkland, and R. K. Mohan, “Modal filtering of stimulated photon echoes in rare earth ion doped crystals utilizing orbital angular momentum phase matching,” Journal of Luminescence, vol. 293, p. 121839, May 2026, doi: 10.1016/j.jlumin.2026.121839.