Space-Time Quantum Metasurfaces

Metasurfaces have recently entered the realm of quantum photonics, enabling manipulation of quantum light using a compact nanophotonic platform. Realizing the full potential of metasurfaces at the deepest quantum level requires the ability to tune coherent light-matter interactions continuously in space and time. Here, we introduce the concept of space-time quantum metasurfaces for arbitrary control of the spectral, spatial, and spin properties of nonclassical light using a compact photonic platform. We show that space-time quantum metasurfaces allow on-demand tailoring of entanglement among all degrees of freedom of a single photon. We also show that spatiotemporal modulation induces asymmetry at the fundamental level of quantum fluctuations, resulting in the generation of steered and vortex photon pairs out of vacuum. Space-time quantum metasurfaces have the potential to enable novel photonic functionalities, such as encoding quantum information into high-dimensional color qudits using designer modulation protocols, sculpting multispectral and multispatial modes in spontaneous emission, and generating reconfigurable hyperentanglement for high-capacity quantum communications.Received 25 February 2021Accepted 4 June 2021DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.127.043603© 2021 American Physical SocietyPhysics Subject Headings (PhySH)Research AreasCasimir effectMetamaterialsPhotonicsQuantum entanglementCondensed Matter, Materials & Applied PhysicsQuantum InformationAtomic, Molecular & OpticalGeneral Physics