Converting optical signals from one wavelength to another with low added noise is key for quantum photonics applications. Lithium niobate, a widely adopted non-linear optical material, has sparked new interest through its recent development in thin-film integration approaches. The new thin-film platform promises low-loss, nonlinear and high-speed electro-optic functionalities that could disrupt quantum applications. However, the quantum noise level in thin-film lithium niobate has yet to be investigated. In this paper, Fan et al. experimentally demonstrate that the quantum noise is about 10^-4 photons per time-frequency mode, which is sufficient for faithful quantum conversion. Such a noise level is on par with the traditional bulk crystal approach, showing that the thin-film platform does not introduce additional noise penalty for quantum frequency conversion. They further reveal that noise levels below 10^-5 can be achieved through optimization. These results show that thin-film lithium niobate is a promising candidate for scalable, functional and cost-effective quantum frequency conversion.

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