Hong-Ou-Mandel effect with two frequency-entangled photons of vastly different color

Abstract: In the original Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) experiment -- when two identical photons are incident upon the input ports of a balanced beam-splitter -- they coalesce, always leaving via the same output port. It is often interpreted that this interference arises due to the indistinguishability of the single photons; the situation, however, is often more nuanced. Here, we demonstrate an analog of HOM interference between two photons of completely different color. To do so, we utilize a quantum frequency converter based on sum- and difference-frequency generation as an `active' beam-splitter -- coupling frequency-entangled red and telecom single photons with an octave-spanning energy difference of 282 THz. This work presents the first demonstration of HOM interference between two single photons of distinctly different color, deepening our understanding of what underlies quantum interference. It also suggests a novel approach to interfacing photonic qubits in heterogeneous quantum systems where frequency conversion and quantum interference are unified.