Hyperentanglement source by intersubband two-photon emission from semiconductor quantum wells

We propose an efficient hyperentanglement source emitting photon pairs entangled in both energy and polarization. The compact electrically driven room-temperature source, based on intersubband two-photon emission from semiconductor quantum wells (QWs) exhibits pair generation rates several orders of magnitude higher than alternative conventional schemes. A theoretical formalism is derived for the calculation of photon pair generation spectra and rates. The results are presented for superlattice structures similar to quantum cascade lasers of GaAs/AlGaAs QWs emitting in the mid-IR and far-IR and for InN/AlN QW structures suitable for telecommunication wavelengths. (C) 2008 Optical Society of America.