High-visibility interference in a Bell-inequality experiment for energy and time

Abstract

We report on a two-photon interference experiment proposed by Franson [Phys. Rev. Lett. 62, 2205 (1989)], in which sinusoidal fringes with visibilities greater than 70.7%, such as those predicted by quantum mechanics, violate a Bell inequality. We observe visibility of 80.4\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.6%, implying a violation of the inequality by 16 standard deviations. Here the elements of reality under consideration are energy and time rather than spin components. Any classical field models describing separate beams in a Franson interferometer are limited to visibilities less than 50%, and hence ruled out as well, without the need for any supplementary assumptions.