Quantum BC Seminar Series – Dr. Benjamin Crockett

Quantum BC Seminar Series Tuesday, September 23, 2025 at 2pm BC Time with Dr. Benjamin Crockett

Join on Zoom: https://ubc.zoom.us/j/69443327772?pwd=TGhhTXFIQ3ZiUmNrN0pUa3FObTNydz09

Meeting ID: 694 4332 7772 Passcode: 996727

In Person at UBC: MacLeod Room 3038

At SFU: SSB Room  7172

Seminar Title:

Coherent energy-redistribution methods for time-frequency manipulation of classical and quantum waves

Seminar Abstract:

As described by the theory of space–time duality, temporal imaging systems implement in the time domain analogous operations to those performed by spatial imaging setups. This allows to implement functionalities like compression, magnification, and Fourier transformation of waveforms in their time- or frequency-representations rather than on the spatial distribution of images. Instead of lenses and free-space propagation, these functions are realized through tailored temporal and spectral phase profiles, for example using electro-optic phase modulators and chirped gratings. Since these schemes manipulate information through coherent energy redistribution of an input field’s energy, such systems provide an especially energy-efficient route to information processing.

Here I will present recent works I have conducted during my time at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (Montréal, Québec) based on these principles. On the classical side, I will show applications to telecommunications, microwave photonics, and ultrafast pulse characterization, demonstrating in-band noise suppression (i.e., noise within the bandwidth of the signal itself) as well as real-time spectral analysis and manipulation of broadband signals. On the quantum side, I will illustrate how entanglement enables dispersion-resilient quantum communication and how coherent energy-redistribution can recover quantum states otherwise buried in noise. I will conclude with my research direction at the University of British Columbia on integrated photonic platforms for multi-photon entangled-state generation.

Short biography:

Benjamin Crockett is a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of British Columbia, working with the groups of Profs. Lukas Chrostowski and Jeff Young. His research focuses on generating novel entangled quantum states on integrated photonic platforms for applications in telecommunications, sensing, and computing. He completed his graduate studies at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) in Montréal with Prof. José Azaña, developing photonic signal-processing strategies for noise mitigation and time-frequency characterization of classical and quantum systems. He received his M.Sc. in 2019 (“Denoising Amplification of Arbitrary Coherent Signals Using the Talbot Effect”) and his Ph.D. in 2025 (“Phase-Based Photonic Signal Processing for Quantum State Manipulation and Analysis”).