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Using spontaneous optical parametric downconversion, we experimentally demonstrate heralded generation of shaped single photons, whose modes are tailored indirectly by applying amplitude modulation on the pump field that drives the downconversion process. Our experiment opens a door to creating high-quality, mode-shaped single photons at a substantially higher efficiency than is possible with the existing method of direct single-photon shaping.

Date of Conference: 18-21 November 1996 Conference Name: 9th Annual Meeting IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society, LEOS 1996 A new self-doubling optical parametric oscillator (OPO) uses a single nonlinear crystal for both parametric generation and frequency doubling. It is based on a KTiOPO4 (KTP) crystal pumped by a Ti:Sapphire laser operating at a wavelength of 739 nm. The crystal is cut such that the signal wavelength of the OPO is at 1064 nm, corresponding to an idler wavelength of 2420 nm. The OPO cavity resonates only the signal wavelength. The signal beam is also phase-matched for second harmonic generation (SHG) at the same crystal orientation. With proper polarization rotation, an output beam at a wavelength of 532 nm can be obtained.