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Abstract:
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Modern communications technology has encouraged an intimate connection between Semiconductor Physics and Optics , and this connection shows best in the combination of electron -confining structures with light -confining structures . Semiconductor quantum dots are systems engineered to trap electrons in a mesoscopic scale (the are composed of [approximately] 10000 atoms ) , resulting in a behavior resembling that of atoms , but much richer . Optical microrseonators are engineered to confine light , increasing its intensity and enabling a much stronger interaction with matter . Their combination opens a myriad of new directions , both in fundamental Physics and in possible applications . This dissertation explores both semiconductor quantum dots and microresonators , through experimental work done with semiconductor quantum dots and microsphere resonators spanning the fields of Quantum Optics , Quantum Information and Photonics ; from quantum algorithms to polarization converters . Quantum Optics leads the way , allowing us to understand how to manipulate and measure quantum dots with light and to elucidate the interactions between them and microresonators . In the Quantum Information area , we present a detailed study of the feasibility of excitons in quantum dots to perform quantum computations , including an experimental demonstration of the single -qubit Deutsch -Jozsa algorithm performed in a single semiconductor quantum dot . Our studies in Photonics involve applications of microsphere resonators , which we have learned to fabricate and characterize . We present an elaborate description of the experimental techniques needed to study microspheres , including studies and proof of concept experiments on both ultra -sensitive microsphere sensors and whispering gallery mode polarization converters . |