Preparation of the Quantum Ground of a Mechanical Resonator

描述原子、电子和光子的微观世界行为的基本理论称为量子力学。量子力学已经在实验室实验和测试中证明了自己是正确的，没有已知的例外。尽管如此，将量子力学应用于更大的物体和长度尺度仍存在概念上的问题。例如，量子力学说，振动机械系统的能量应该量子化，只有谨慎的能量值才可能。此外，该理论要求位置测量必然会扰乱机械结构的运动，这称为海森堡测不准原理。这两种预测都远远超出了我们对经典现实的正常体验。该项目将继续进行实验，以探索由数十亿个原子组成的小型机械结构中的这些微妙和奇怪的效应。这将通过使用最先进的实验科学工具来实现：纳米制造、超低温物理和量子计算电子器件。该项目将支持博士生在这些先进技术方面的教育，从历史上看，这对从学术界到我们最先进的技术行业的许多科学职业来说都是极好的培训。这个项目要么成功地证明了量子力学在奇怪的大尺度上是正确的，要么我们失败了，可能会发现量子力学的新特征，而这些新特征还不为人所知。这两种可能性都将改变我们对量子力学的理解和我们对物理世界的看法。*技术摘要*这个项目将继续进行实验，以探索机械结构中的量子测量极限。这些技术正在制造和测量由100亿个原子组成的小型射频机械结构的量子基态。这将使用纳米机械结构与非常低损耗的超导微波谐振器相耦合来实现。此外，使用这些技术，似乎可以产生避免海森堡不确定度原理(HUP)要求的连续测量的反向作用的检测，并产生压缩态，其中不确定度周期性地下降到HUP以下。通过对这些压缩态衰变的仔细研究，有望为某种宏观物体提供环境退相干机制的定量测试。由于纳米机电设备、超导电子学技术的最新进展，这些实验现在才有可能。该项目将支持博士生在这些先进技术方面的教育，从历史上看，这对从学术界到我们最先进的技术行业的许多科学职业来说都是极好的培训。预计这些实验将引起科学界的普遍兴趣，并提供超灵敏读出技术，特别是对于寻求纳米级灵敏检测的社区。

****NON-TECHNICAL ABSTRACT****The fundamental theory which describes the behavior of the microscopic world of atoms, electrons, and photons is called quantum mechanics. Quantum mechanics has shown itself to be correct in laboratory experiments and tests, with no known exceptions. In spite of this, there are conceptual problems with applying quantum mechanics to larger objects and length scales. For instance, quantum mechanics says that the energy of vibrating mechanical system should quantized, with only discreet values of the energy possible. Furthermore, the theory requires that position measurements will necessarily perturb the motion of the mechanical structure, called the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. Both of these predictions are far outside our normal experience of classical reality. This project will pursue experiments to probe these subtle and bizarre effects in small mechanical structures formed by billions of atoms. This will be accomplished by employing the most advance tools of experimental science: nanofabrication, ultra-low temperature physics, and quantum computing electronic devices. This project will support the education of a PhD student in these advanced technologies, which has historically shown itself to be excellent training for many scientific careers from academia to our most advanced technology industries. This project will either succeed to show quantum mechanics is true at bizarrely large length scales, or we will fail and possibly find new features to quantum mechanics which are not yet known. Both possibilities would change our understanding of quantum mechanics and our view of the physical world.****TECHNICAL ABSTRACT****This project will pursue experiments to probe quantum measurement limits in mechanical structures. The techniques are in hand to produce and measure the quantum ground state of a small, radio frequency mechanical structure formed by 10 billion atoms. This will be accomplished using a nanomechanical structure coupled to a very low loss, superconducting microwave resonator. Furthermore, using these techniques, it appears possible to produce detection with avoids the backaction required by the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle (HUP) for continuous measurement, and to produce squeezed states, where the uncertainties periodically dip below the HUP. By careful study of the decay of these squeezed states, it is expected to be able to provide a quantitative test of environmental decoherence mechanisms for a somewhat macroscopic body. These experiments are now only very recently possible due to the latest advances in nano-electro-mechanical devices, superconducting electronics technology. This project will support the education of a PhD student in these advanced technologies, which has historically shown itself to be excellent training for many scientific careers from academia to our most advanced technology industries. These experiments are expected to be of general interest to the scientific community and to provide ultra-sensitive readout techniques especially for the community pursing sensitive detection at the nano-scale.