| Abstract: |
Photonic lattices in the form of arrays of optical waveguides with nearest-neighbor evanescent coupling offer a rich playground for the study of linear and nonlinear wave phenomena in periodic and disordered media. Such lattices have been used over the last decade to study some of the most basic phenomena of wave propagation in periodic and quasi-periodic structures, from Bloch Oscillations to Anderson Localization. In the last few years we have shown that such structures could serve as an excellent decoherence-free platform for the study of quantum dynamics, and in particular of quantum walks. Random quantum walk is the process describing the motion of a quantum particle that hops randomly, yet coherently, from site to site on a lattice. We have extended this concept to more complex random walks of several particles, and have shown that such walks by indistinguishable particles lead to new and surprising effects on the quantum correlations of the co-propagating walkers in periodic lattices. Even more surprises are found when the quantum walkers move in a disordered lattice where the particles are also constrained via Anderson localization, and I will present recent experiments on such systems. |
