We demonstrate universal and programmable three-mode linear-optical operations in the time domain by realizing a scalable dual-loop optical circuit suitable for universal quantum information processing (QIP). The programmability, validity, and deterministic operation of our circuit are demonstrated by performing nine different three-mode operations on squeezed-state pulses, fully characterizing the outputs with variable measurements, and confirming their entanglement. Our circuit can be scaled up just by making the outer loop longer and also extended to universal quantum computers by incorporating feed forward systems. Thus, our work paves the way to large-scale universal optical QIP.

• Received 27 December 2022
• Accepted 23 June 2023

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.131.040601