Building a programmable trapped ion quantum simulator

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Quantum computers, a grand challenge in the rapidly expanding field of experimental quantum information processing, are perhaps decades away. Quantum simulators - well-controlled experimental quantum systems to simulate specific quantum models are practical with current technologies. They can be useful in the near future to solve problems of quantum physics and chemistry, which are intractable on super-computers. Quantum simulators have indeed been built in recent times with several hardware platforms, such as trapped-ions, ultra-cold neutral atoms, and some solid state systems. They have been used to study models of quantum many-particle systems, such as interacting electrons tunneling on a lattice in a condensed matter system, or models of quantum magnetism. However, current quantum simulators either have too few qubits to be practically useful, or are restricted to solve only a few specific problems, such as a specific quantum model on a fixed geometry. My research program concerns both of these problems and has the ultimate goal of building a quantum simulator with over a hundred trapped-ion qubits that are programmable at the level of individual qubits and interactions between them. In the next 5 years, our research will be carried out in two parallel efforts by graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and undergraduate researchers. The first effort aims to realize arbitrarily programmable qubit-qubit interactions in about ten Yb+ ion qubits. This will enable the simulator to go beyond the physical geometry of the ion chain and solve quantum dynamics on re-configurable lattice geometry. We will develop a novel holographic optical method using Digital Light Projection (DLP) technology to individually address single ions. The second effort aims to increase the system size to many dozens of qubits. For this, we will develop a dual species quantum simulator (Yb+/Ba+), with Yb+ as the qubits and Ba+ as coolants to enhance quantum coherence. In the future, the two research efforts will be combined to realize a large quantum system that is arbitrarily programmable.HQPs will be trained in a broad range of topics, including safe operations of high power lasers, optics, electronics, DLP technology, ultra-high vacuum, ion traps, spectroscopy, quantum information sciences, quantum many-body physics, and atomic physics. These trainings will prepare HQPs well for future career options including academia and industry. This research program will contribute new fundamental and technical advances in the field of quantum information, and will further position Canada as a world leader in quantum information research, as there are only a handful of advanced quantum simulators in the world. The talent pool and expertise created will boost Canada's economy by contributing to the rapidly growing field of quantum technologies, which promise to fundamentally change our economy and society in near future.