权益分类	功能权益	普通用户	{{item.name}}会员
{{category.name}}	{{benefitItem.name}}

Coherent Electron Control

相干电子控制

基本信息

批准号：
1912504
负责人：
Herman Batelaan
金额：
$ 47.52万
依托单位：
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Standard Grant
财政年份：
2019
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2019-08-01 至 2023-07-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1912504&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
Coherent Electron Control

项目摘要

Classical Mechanics tells us how bridges, cars, and other objects in our everyday world work. Quantum Mechanics tells us how electrons, atoms and other objects in the microscopic world work. We need to find a description of nature that works at the microscopic and macroscopic scales and everything in between. This is a century-old unsolved problem that is called the "Quantum Measurement Problem." Not only do we want to solve the problem, but we want to use "quantumness" at a larger scale, and not understanding the problem stops us from doing this. To solve this problem objects at an intermediate scale, in between the microscopic and macroscopic, need to be studied. This is what the project: "Coherent Electron Control" is aiming to do. Microscopic objects, electrons, are placed close to an everyday world object, a wall, so that the description of how the two interact is neither described by Quantum Mechanics, nor Classical Mechanics. New models and theories can be tested in this way. On the practical side, the interaction between electrons and walls has stopped the development of sensitive devices based on electrons, called electron interferometers. The walls destroy the useful quantum mechanical properties of the electrons. If this "decoherence" can be overcome, new electron devices can be constructed that measure, for example, small changes in magnetic fields, and may thus find application in the numerous areas of technology where magnetic fields play a key role.Electron diffraction from nanofabricated gratings will be used to split electron beams coherently into two parts. Walls will be placed close to the electron beams to partially decohere the electron beams. The electron beams are recombined and the measured amount of quantum mechanical interference tells us about the amount of decoherence. Four different existing microscopic theories have now been tested. Control of the decoherence will be explored by changing the wall from insulating copper oxide, to semi-conducting Gallium Arsenide, to conducting gold, and illuminating the walls with laser light and particles. The understanding gained will be used to control and reduce the decoherence and be applied to enlarge the size of existing electron interferometers. In this way it is attempted to construct the largest and most sensitive electron interferometer in the world. Patents will be pursued based on the new technology being developed and the inventions may be marketable. The research project provides experience to graduate students, undergraduate students and high school students in the new research area of free electron quantum optics.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

经典力学告诉我们日常生活中的桥梁、汽车和其他物体是如何工作的。量子力学告诉我们微观世界中的电子、原子和其他物体是如何工作的。我们需要找到一种适用于微观和宏观尺度以及介于两者之间的一切尺度的自然描述。这是一个百年未解的难题，被称为“量子测量问题”。我们不仅要解决问题，而且要在更大范围内使用“量子性”，不理解问题会阻止我们这样做。为了解决这个问题，需要研究介于微观和宏观之间的中间尺度的物体。这就是“相干电子控制”项目的目标。微观物体（电子）被放置在日常世界物体（墙壁）附近，因此量子力学和经典力学都无法描述两者如何相互作用。新的模型和理论可以通过这种方式进行测试。在实际方面，电子和墙壁之间的相互作用已经阻止了基于电子的敏感设备（称为电子干涉仪）的开发。这些壁破坏了电子有用的量子力学特性。如果可以克服这种“退相干”，就可以构建新的电子设备来测量磁场的微小变化，从而可以在磁场发挥关键作用的众多技术领域得到应用。来自纳米制造光栅的电子衍射将用于将电子束相干地分成两部分。墙壁将放置在靠近电子束的位置，以部分地使电子束退相干。电子束重新组合，测量到的量子力学干涉量告诉我们退相干量。现在已经测试了四种不同的现有微观理论。将通过将壁从绝缘氧化铜改为半导体砷化镓、导电金，并用激光和粒子照射壁来探索退相干的控制。所获得的理解将用于控制和减少退相干，并用于扩大现有电子干涉仪的尺寸。试图以此方式建造世界上最大、最灵敏的电子干涉仪。将根据正在开发的新技术以及可能具有市场价值的发明来申请专利。该研究项目为研究生、本科生和高中生提供自由电子量子光学新研究领域的经验。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，认为值得支持。