High-quality silicon single-photon source for practical quantum network

A high-quality heralded single photon source is realized on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform. With the help of specially designed ultra-low loss fiber-chip edge couplers, the heralding efficiency of the single photon source system is 56%, after calibrating for a 38% detector efficiency. Compared with the state of the art, this measured heralding efficiency marks a new milestone for integrated, on-chip silicon sources.