Nalasopara East, a representative case of chaotic urban fabric in Mumbai, India, is comprised of densely packed mid-rise chawl developments which neglect the complex and unorganized network of informal economic activities of the low-income residents for the benefit of the private developers. This affordable housing project aims to embrace the existing vibrancy of Nalasopara East, yet provide an alternative redevelopment solution to the remaining pockets of ground-storey baithi chawls that can not only increase density but also provide quality by creating a flexible live-work typology dedicated to different groups of the informal sector predominant in Mumbai. Unlike the conventional affordable housing process, a controlled participation will be incorporated to value the residents’ communal decisions as well as an efficient construction of low-cost and sustainable GFRG material will be explored. This pilot micro-scale redevelopment hopes to contribute to the making of the community-generating neighborhoods throughout the course of time where low-income locals and informal workers can both economically and socially benefit together.

Large-scale fiber-based quantum networks will likely employ telecommunication-wavelength photons of around 1550 nm wavelength to exchange quantum information between remote nodes, and quantum memories, ideally operating at the same wavelength, that allow the transmission distances to be increased, as key elements of a quantum repeater. However, the development of a suitable memory remains an ongoing challenge. Here, we demonstrate the storage and reemission of single heralded 1532-nm-wavelength photons using a crystal waveguide. The photons are emitted from a photon-pair source based on spontaneous parametric down-conversion and the memory is based on an atomic frequency comb of 6 GHz bandwidth, prepared through persistent spectral-hole burning of the inhomogeneously broadened absorption line of a cryogenically cooled erbium-doped lithium niobate waveguide. Despite currently limited storage time and efficiency, this demonstration represents an important step toward quantum networks that operate in the telecommunication band and the development of integrated (on-chip) quantum technology using industry-standard crystals.

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