Temporal coherence and correlation of counterpropagating twin photons

Abstract

This work analyses the temporal coherence and correlation of counterpropagating twin photons generated in a quasi-phase matched nonlinear cristal by spontaneous parametric-down conversion. We find out different pictures depending on the pump pulse duration relative to two characteristic temporal scales, determined respectively by the temporal separation between the counter-propagating and the co-propagating wavepackets. When the pump duration is intermediate between the two scales, we show a transition from a highly entangled state to an almost separable state, with strongly asymmetric spectral properties of the photons.