NER: Microscopic Traps for Electrons in Vacuum

摘要：提案编号：0508346标题：真空中电子的微观陷阱PI：Marija DrindicInst：宾夕法尼亚大学NSF NER提案的目标是在真空中建立第一个冷（低能）电子的微观陷阱，并演示在真空中表面上方的小尺度上捕获，检测和操纵单个电子。这一建议的智力价值在于发展真空中小尺度上的电子捕获、检测和操纵技术。 在实现这些陷阱，它将研究如何与附近的表面在纳米和微米的长度尺度的电子相互作用，以及如何电子运动可以检测和控制附近的微加工线。这项研究的广泛影响是，它将首次实现真空中的电子“量子点”或“人造原子”。微阱中的电子类似于氢原子;在所提出的情况下，氢核将被微阱的电极“取代”。 在微观尺度上控制电子有望在原子和凝聚态物理学的界面上开辟新的可能性，包括真空中的集成电子电路，真空中的单个和耦合量子点以及量子计算机的可能实现。PI积极支持本科生的研究，一名本科生将参与拟议的探索性项目。

ABSTRACT:Proposal No: 0508346Title: MICROSCOPIC TRAPS FOR ELECTRONS IN VACUUM PI: Marija DrindicInst: University of Pennsylvania The objective of this NSF NER proposal is to build the first microscopic traps for cold (low-energy) electrons in vacuum and to demonstrate the trapping, detection, and manipulation of single electrons at small scales above surfaces in vacuum. The intellectual merit of this proposal is in developing the technologies for electron trapping, detection and manipulation on small scales in vacuum. In realizing these traps, it will be studied how the electrons interact with nearby surfaces at nanometer and micrometer length-scales, and how the electron motion can be detected and controlled near microfabricated wires. The broad impact of the proposed research is that it will present the first realization of electron "quantum dots" or "artificial atoms" in vacuum. An electron in a microtrap resembles a hydrogen atom; the hydrogen nucleus will be "replaced" in the proposed case by the electrodes of the microtrap. Control of electrons on microscopic scales is expected to open up new possibilities at the interface of atomic and condensed matter physics including integrated electronic circuits in vacuum, single and coupled quantum dots in vacuum and possible implementation of quantum computers. The PI is actively supporting the research of undergraduates, and one undergraduate will be involved in the proposed exploratory project.