Abstract
We investigate atom-photon entangling gates based on cavity quantum electrodynamics (QED) for a finite photon-pulse duration, where not only the photon loss but also the temporal mode-mismatch of the photon pulse becomes a severe source of error. We analytically derive relations between cavity parameters, including transmittance, length, and effective cross-sectional area of the cavity, that minimize both the photon loss probability and the error rate due to temporal mode-mismatch by taking it into account as state-dependent pulse delay. We also investigate the effects of pulse distortion using numerical simulations for the case of short pulse duration. We believe that these analyses are the first to suggest that a cavity has an optimal length for the atom-photon gate, providing a fundamental guideline for implementing quantum information processing.