EKO Integrated Quantum Optics and Sensing Research Group
EN TR

Teaching

Courses taught in quantum technologies, integrated photonics, and related areas.

KBM 606 Photonic Integrated Circuits

Graduate course, Hacettepe University, Quantum Science and Engineering, 2026

Objective of this course is to gain understanding of optical phenomena on the nanometer/micrometer scale, learn manipulating the light integrated micro/nano-photonic structures, and to be able to design integrated micro/nano-photonic structures that are used for quantum technology applications.

Details

Course Content

Part I - Theory

  • Maxwell Equations, Wave Equation, Spectral Representation, Monochromatic Fields
  • Duality, Energy Flow, Reciprocity, Interfaces, Dielectric Media
  • Polarization & TEM/TE/TM Fields, Elementary EM Waves, Absorption/Dispersion, Scattering, Pulse Propagation
  • FDTD Connection to Maxwell Eqs., Yee Cell & Boundary Conditions, Lumerical MODE (FDE) Eigenmode Solver and Sparse Matrix Formulation
  • 2D (Slab) Dielectric Waveguides, From Maxwell to TE/TM Eigenvalue Equations, Dispersion, and Normalization

Part II - Simulation

  • Design and numerical simulations of waveguide structures-I
  • Design and numerical simulations of waveguide structures-II
  • Design and numerical simulations of complex structures (MRR, beam splitters, directional couplers, …) - I
  • Design and numerical simulations of complex structures (MRR, beam splitters, directional couplers, …) - II

Part III - Advanced Topics

  • Nano-photonic quantum applications -I
  • Nano-photonic quantum applications -II
  • Nano-photonic quantum applications -III
  • Production and characterization techniques-I
  • Production and characterization techniques-II
  • Inverse design of nano-photonic components

References

  • B. E. A. Saleh, Fundamentals of Photonics, 3rd ed., Wiley, 2019.
  • R. Osgood and X. Meng, Principles of Photonic Integrated Circuits: Materials, Device Physics, Guided Wave Design, Springer, 2021.
  • S. Chuang, Physics of Photonic Devices, 2nd ed., Wiley, 2009.
  • L. Novotny and B. Hecht, Principles of Nano-Optics, 2nd ed., Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Grading

Item
Number
Weight
Assignments
6
25%
Project
1
25%
Final exam
1
50%
  • Total attendance should be over 70%.
  • Students need to choose or identify a topic for their personal project. The project should include a complete body of work, such as mathematical derivations, simulations/modeling, or other relevant steps similar to those in a research paper.
  • Final exam will be in class and the date/hour will be announced.

Project Topics

  • Design of a Silicon Photonic Source for On-Chip Entangled Photon Pair Generation
  • Design of an Integrated Beam Splitter for Quantum Interference
  • Inverse Design of a Compact Quantum State Beam Splitter
  • Design of a 50:50 Directional Coupler + Microring Filter System
  • MRR + Grating Coupler
  • Integrated Power Splitter + Wavelength Filter
  • …

Lecture Notes

  • Refractive index
  • Flexcompute

    https://tidy3d.simulation.cloud/home - remember to use your edu.tr e-mail for registration and apply for education license.

  • Lecture-1
  • Lecture-2
  • Lecture-3
  • Lecture-4
  • HW-1

    Using tidy3D interface design a SiN/SiOx - air cladding waveguide/substrate structure with h=500 nm, and variable width 1.55 um. Locate widths support only TE, and two TE, three TE modes. Report neff and plot E, and transverse Electric Field component.

  • HW-2

    Using Lumerical MODE design a SiN/SiOx - air cladding waveguide/substrate structure with h=500 nm, w=1000 nm at 1.55 um. Create a copy of this waveguide with same height and y-dimensions. Change the seperation between the waveguides from 0 to 200 nm with 20 nm steps and plot the E-field intensity and comment on the E-field distribution. Similarly plot efective index values for different geometries in a single plot and comment.

  • Lecture-5
  • Lecture-6
  • HW-3

    Calculate the modes at 450 nm wavelength in MODE for a waveguide with 200 nm height and 600 nm width. For the fundamental TE mode, perform a frequency analysis between 450 nm and 550 nm, and export the interconnect file as wg.ldf. In Interconnect, add a MODE waveguide and import the file you exported, then set its length to 1 micrometer. Add an ONA, connect the input and output ports, and set the ONA operating wavelength range between 450 nm and 550 nm. Run the simulation and check the Transmission plot to confirm that it exhibits a standing wave. By changing the length, observe how the transmission varies.

  • HW-4

    Calculate the modes at 1500 nm wavelength in MODE for a waveguide with 500 nm height and 1050 nm width. For the fundamental TE mode, perform a frequency analysis between 1500 nm and 1600 nm, and export the interconnect file as wg.ldf. In Interconnect, add a Straight Mode waveguide and import the corresponding file. Add the mirror structures below along with an ONA, and set the ONA to analyze in the wavelength range between 1500 nm and 1600 nm. Run the simulation and examine the Transmission graph. By varying the mirror reflectivities between 0.5 and 0.99, calculate the FWHM, Q, and FSR values.

  • HW-5

    Check the example : https://optics.ansys.com/hc/en-us/articles/360042323794-Ring-resonator-using-INTERCONNECT-primitive-elements. and repeat it for wavelengths 1500-1600 nm. Plot the results for transmission, Q factor and FSR.

KBM 603 Quantum Technologies and Their Applications

Graduate course, Hacettepe University, Quantum Science and Engineering, 2026

Objective of this course is to explain how some main quantum technologies are implemented and establish an understanding regarding the fundamental challenges and limitations of the quantum technologies.

Details

Course Content

Part I

  • Introduction
  • Two-level systems and Single Photon Sources (SPS)
  • Rydberg Atoms / Neutral Atoms
  • Superconducting Qubits
  • Nonlinear Interactions and Photon Pair Sources
  • Qumodes

Part II

  • Photonic Quantum Gates and Implementations (DV)
  • Characterization of Quantum States (DV)
  • Characterization of Quantum States (CV)

Part III

  • Quantum Computing (Hardware)
  • Quantum Communication
  • Quantum Sensing

References

  • M. Fox, Quantum Optics: An Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2006.
  • A. Blais, A. L. Grimsmo, S. M. Girvin, and A. Wallraff, Circuit Quantum Electrodynamics, Rev. Mod. Phys. 93, 025005 (2021).
  • O. Ezratty, Understanding Quantum Technologies 2025.
  • M. A. Nielsen and I. L. Chuang, Quantum Computation and Quantum Information, Cambridge University Press, 2009.
  • M. Benyoucef (Ed.), Photonic Quantum Technologies: Science and Applications, Wiley, 2023.
  • C. L. Degen, F. Reinhard, and P. Cappellaro, Quantum sensing, Rev. Mod. Phys. 89, 035002 (2017).

Grading

Item
Number
Weight
Assignments
3
25%
Project
1
25%
Final exam
1
50%
  • Total attendance should be over 70%.
  • Students need to choose or identify a topic for their personal project. The project should include a complete body of work, such as mathematical derivations, simulations/modeling, or other relevant steps similar to those in a research paper.
  • Final exam will be in class and the date/hour will be announced.

Project Topics

  • Superconducting Quantum Circuits
  • Quantum Communication Protocols
  • Quantum Metrology Applications
  • Photonic Quantum Light Sources
  • …

Lecture Notes

KBM 607 Nonlinear Optics for Quantum Technologies

Graduate course, Hacettepe University, Quantum Science and Engineering, 2027

This course introduces the physical principles of nonlinear optics and their use in quantum technologies, including photon-pair generation, spectral engineering, integrated photonics, squeezing, and quantum frequency conversion.

Details

Course Content

Week 1

  • Linear and nonlinear material response; electric polarization; Lorentz oscillator and anharmonic response; susceptibility expansion χ(1), χ(2), χ(3); first frequency-generation processes; classical-to-quantum correspondence.

Week 2

  • Wave equation in dielectric media; linear susceptibility and refractive index; phase and group velocity; group-velocity dispersion; nonlinear polarization as a distributed source; preparation for phase matching.

Week 3

  • Tensor susceptibility; crystal and inversion symmetry; contracted notation; SHG, SFG, and DFG; Type-0/I/II polarization configurations; selection rules and effective nonlinear coefficient d_eff.

Week 4

  • Wave-vector mismatch Δk; coherent build-up and the sinc response; coherence length; birefringent phase matching; QPM and periodic poling; spectral acceptance; review of SPDC source engineering.

Week 5

  • General coupled-wave equations; conversion and energy exchange; pump depletion; Manley–Rowe relations; optical parametric amplification and oscillation; phase-sensitive gain; classical precursor to SPDC and squeezing.

Week 6

  • Field quantization; interaction Hamiltonian; vacuum-seeded pair creation; perturbative and squeezed-vacuum descriptions; multipair statistics; continuous-frequency state; heralding and source metrics.

Week 7

  • Number-conserving frequency-mode coupling; JSA and JSI; group-velocity matching; reduced states; Schmidt decomposition and purity; filtering trade-offs; spectral phase; Hong–Ou–Mandel indistinguishability.

Week 8

  • Optical Kerr effect; n2; SPM and XPM; nonlinear phase; effective length and mode area; waveguide coefficient γ; classical FWM phase-matching conditions.

Week 9

  • SFWM Hamiltonian and vacuum pair creation; pulsed and CW pumping; SFWM JSA; dispersion engineering; pair-rate and multipair scaling; Raman and nonlinear scattering; measurement and SPDC comparison.

Week 10

  • Guided modes and effective index; modal and nonlinear overlap; propagation/coupling loss; directional couplers; Mach–Zehnder interferometers; fabrication tolerances; silicon and SiN platforms; design workflow.

Week 11

  • Micro-ring resonance conditions; FSR, linewidth, photon lifetime, and quality factors; intrinsic/coupling loss and critical coupling; field enhancement; resonator FWM; integrated dispersion; JSA purity and extraction trade-offs; tuning and filtering.

Week 12

  • Quadrature operators and conventions; vacuum/coherent/squeezed states; single- and two-mode squeezing; EPR correlations; homodyne detection; phase noise and practical limits.

Week 13

  • Number-conserving frequency-mode coupling; DFG, SFG, and FWM Bragg scattering; frequency-domain beam-splitter transformation; efficiency, bandwidth, and noise; preservation of quantum states; entanglement of quantum states among frequency bins; emitter, memory, and telecom interfaces; network-level design and reporting metrics.

References

  • G. P. Agrawal, Nonlinear fiber optics, Sixth edition. London: Academic Press, an imprint of Elsevier, 2019.
  • R. W. Boyd, Nonlinear optics, Fourth edition. London: Elsevier, AP Academic Press, 2020.
  • M. Chekhova and P. Banzer, Polarization of light: in classical, quantum, and nonlinear optics. in Graduate. Berlin Boston: De Gruyter, 2021.
  • P. D. Drummond and M. Hillery, The Quantum Theory of Nonlinear Optics, 1st ed. Cambridge University Press, 2014.

Grading

Item
Number
Weight
Assignments (In Class)
5
25%
Midterm
1
25%
Final exam
1
50%
  • Total attendance should be over 70%.
  • Final exam will be in class and the date/hour will be announced.

Lecture Notes

  • Introduction to Nonlinear Optics
  • Wave Propagation and Dispersion
  • χ², Tensor and Symmetry
  • Phase Matching and QPM
  • Three-Wave Mixing, OPA and OPO
  • Quantum χ² and SPDC
  • SPDC Spectral Engineering and HOM
  • Third-Order Optics: Kerr and FWM
  • Spontaneous Four-Wave Mixing
  • Integrated Waveguide Devices
  • Resonator-Enhanced Quantum Photonics
  • Quadratures, Squeezing and CV Optics
  • Quantum Frequency Conversion