{"id":1768,"date":"2026-01-22T15:15:02","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T05:15:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/?p=1768"},"modified":"2026-02-20T13:32:04","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T03:32:04","slug":"paper-bright-pulsed-squeezed-light-for-quantum-enhanced-precision-microscopy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/?p=1768","title":{"rendered":"Paper: Bright pulsed squeezed light for quantum-enhanced precision microscopy"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"aligncenter wp-block-post-featured-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1224\" height=\"441\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1.png\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"object-fit:cover;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1.png 1224w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1-300x108.png 300w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1-1024x369.png 1024w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1-768x277.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1224px) 100vw, 1224px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>22 Jan 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Abstract<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Squeezed states of light enable enhanced measurement precision by reducing noise below the standard quantum limit. A key application of squeezed light is nonlinear microscopy, where state-of-the-art performance is limited by photodamage and quantum-limited noise. Such microscopes require bright, pulsed light for optimal operation, yet generating and detecting bright pulsed squeezing at high levels remains challenging. In this work, we present an efficient technique to generate high levels of bright picosecond pulsed squeezed light using a <math data-latex=\"\\chi^2 \"><semantics><msup><mi>\u03c7<\/mi><mn>2<\/mn><\/msup><annotation encoding=\"application\/x-tex\">\\chi^2 <\/annotation><\/semantics><\/math> optical parametric amplification process in a waveguide. We measure -3.8 dB of bright squeezing with optical power compatible with nonlinear microscopy, as well as -3.6 dB of vacuum squeezing. Corrected for losses, these squeezing levels correspond to -15.4 <math data-latex=\"^{+2.7}_{-8.7}\"><semantics><msubsup><mrow><\/mrow><mrow><mo lspace=\"0em\" rspace=\"0em\">\u2212<\/mo><mn>8.7<\/mn><\/mrow><mrow><mo lspace=\"0em\" rspace=\"0em\">+<\/mo><mn>2.7<\/mn><\/mrow><\/msubsup><annotation encoding=\"application\/x-tex\">^{+2.7}_{-8.7}<\/annotation><\/semantics><\/math> dB of squeezing generated in the waveguide. The measured level of bright amplitude pulsed squeezing is to our knowledge the highest reported to date, and will contribute to the broader adoption of quantum-enhanced nonlinear microscopy in biological studies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"1-figures\">Browse Figures<\/h4>\n\n\n<div style=\"min-height: 285px;; \" class=\"ub_image_slider alignfull ub-navigation-outside wp-block-ub-image-slider\" id=\"ub-image-slider-66180c65-9a71-43b5-917f-925191e3049b\"><div class=\"ub-slider-wrapper\"><div class=\"ub-swiper-button-prev swiper-button-prev\"><\/div><div class=\"ub_image_slider swiper-container swiper\" id=\"ub_image_slider_66180c65-9a71-43b5-917f-925191e3049b\" data-swiper-data='{\"speed\":300,\"spaceBetween\":20,\"slidesPerView\":1,\"loop\":true,\"pagination\":{\"el\": \".swiper-pagination\" , \"type\": \"bullets\", \"clickable\":true},\"navigation\": {\"nextEl\": \".ub-swiper-button-next\", \"prevEl\": \".ub-swiper-button-prev\"}, \"keyboard\": { \"enabled\": true }, \"effect\": \"slide\",\"autoplay\":{\"delay\": 3000},\"simulateTouch\":false}'>\n            <div class=\"swiper-wrapper\"><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1.png\" alt=\"\" style=\"height: 250px;; \">\n                <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><\/figcaption>\n            <\/figure><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig2.png\" alt=\"\" style=\"height: 250px;; \">\n                <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><\/figcaption>\n            <\/figure><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig3.png\" alt=\"\" style=\"height: 250px;; \">\n                <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><\/figcaption>\n            <\/figure><\/div>\n            <div class=\"swiper-pagination\"><\/div>\n            \n        <\/div><div class=\"ub-swiper-button-next swiper-button-next\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"1-figures\">Authors<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/akex_headshot.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1217\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1;object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/akex_headshot.jpg 512w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/akex_headshot-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/akex_headshot-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alex Terrasson<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"960\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/lars_headshot-1.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1265\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1;object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/lars_headshot-1.jpeg 720w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/lars_headshot-1-225x300.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lars Madsen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/joel_headshot.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1769\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1;object-fit:cover\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Joel Grim<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/warwick_headshot-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1157\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1;object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/warwick_headshot-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/warwick_headshot-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/warwick_headshot-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/warwick_headshot-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/warwick_headshot.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Warwick Bowen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"gap: 20px;\" class=\"align-button-center ub-buttons orientation-button-row ub-flex-wrap wp-block-ub-button\" id=\"ub-button-e5bbd667-6798-4b4c-8396-9c390a3b9544\"><div class=\"ub-button-container ub-button-full-container\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2601.15565\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" class=\"ub-button-block-main  ub-button-full-width \" role=\"button\" style=\"--ub-button-background-color: #9362c4; 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width: 2px; height: 100px; \" data-divider-alignment=\"center\"><div class=\"ub_divider_line\" style=\"border-left: 2px solid #ccc; width: fit-content; height: 100px; \"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-fe9cc265 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<p>Copyright \u00a9 2025 University of Queensland <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uq.edu.au\/legal\/copyright-privacy-disclaimer\/\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#000000\" class=\"has-inline-color\">UQ Privacy Policy<\/mark><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>22 Jan 2026 Abstract Squeezed states of light enable enhanced measurement precision by reducing noise below the standard quantum limit. A key application of squeezed light is nonlinear microscopy, where state-of-the-art performance is limited by photodamage and quantum-limited noise. Such microscopes require bright, pulsed light for optimal operation, yet generating and detecting bright pulsed squeezing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":1772,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1768","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorised"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1.png","author_info":{"display_name":false,"author_link":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/?author=11"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/brightsqueezing_fig1.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1768","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1768"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1768\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1824,"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1768\/revisions\/1824"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1768"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1768"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qo.lab.uq.edu.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1768"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}