AQP Seminar: Cavity Optomechanics with Diamond Resonators

Aalto Quantum Physics Seminar (Nanotalo). Speaker: David Lake (University of Calgary)

Due to a large bandgap, excellent thermal conductivity, and large Young’s modulus, diamond is an ideal material to support optical and mechanical modes. Additionally, in recent years, localized impurities or “colour centres” have proven to be excellent candidates for distributed quantum entanglement. Unfortunately, unlike more mature photonic technologies, diamond substrates with a built-in sacrificial layer are not yet commercially available. In this presentation I will discuss our novel fabrication process, which allows us to fabricate microdisks directly from single crystal diamond. We then utilize these microdisks as a platform to realize novel optomechanical effects. In particular, we demonstrate coherent interference between different colours of light, and use this to create an all-optical switch. Furthermore we demonstrate that by using an auxiliary mode, information can be stored and manipulated. Finally I will discuss our efforts towards interfacing our optomechanical control with colour centres situated in these diamond devices.