A Quantum Hybrid System for Linking Rydberg Atom Quantum Gates

在过去的一年里，基于里德堡原子构建中性原子量子门取得了重大进展。这些量子门是构建可扩展量子计算机的良好候选者，因为它们具有独特的优势，即存储量子信息的原子基态相互作用弱，而执行门操作的里德堡态相互作用强。这些特性使得里德堡原子量子门相对不受环境噪声的影响，因此显示出作为量子设备可扩展系统的巨大前景。从理论上讲，里德堡原子系综也可以通过里德堡原子偶极阻挡使里德堡原子中性量子门更强大，从而使其集体表现为“超级原子”。使里德堡原子量子门变得有用和可扩展所必需的一个重要元素是通过电磁场在门之间传输信息的方法。我们的研究重点是开发这块里德堡原子量子计算工具箱。我们正在研究一种新型的量子混合系统，它可以用来在两个不同的里德堡原子云之间传输量子信息。里德堡原子可以与表面极化子发生强烈的相互作用，表面极化子可以用来在空间中两个不同的点之间传递信息。表面极化子是晶体振动和光的混合物，可以沿着介电固体(如石英)的表面传播。该项目将支持2名研究生谁将完成所述的工作。该研究计划还将使本科生能够通过OU的高级论文和NSF-REU计划参与其中。我们的研究小组在过去10年中完成了31篇不同的高级论文和NSF-REU项目，证明了我们的研究小组成功地参与了本科生的研究。为了帮助招收新学生并教授参与该项目的学生，PI将在暑期课程中向教职员工、研究生和暑期本科生(最近在OU-Tulsa)教授与这项研究相关的主题，包括他过去教授的高级研究主题，只有休假才会打断这些主题。据我们所知，我们的工作还将开启一种几乎从未探索过的原子场相互作用，即里德堡原子和表面声子极化子之间发生的相互作用。这一领域的研究有助于更好地了解表面和开发极化电子器件。这一点很重要，因为极化子跨越的频率位于光子和电子设备的交界处。这项工作还将有助于开发其他基于原子的设备的读出方案，这些设备可以集成到原子芯片中，并与传统电子设备接口。

There has been significant progress constructing neutral atom quantum gates based on Rydberg atoms over the last year. These quantum gates are good candidates for building a scalable quantum computer because they possess the distinct advantage that the atomic ground states, where quantum information is stored, are weakly interacting while the Rydberg states, where gate operations are performed, are strongly interacting. These features make Rydberg atom quantum gates relatively immune to environmental noise and therefore show great promise as scalable systems for quantum devices. Theoretically, Rydberg atom ensembles can also be made to behave collectively as 'superatoms' using Rydberg atom dipole blockade to make Rydberg atom neutral quantum gates even more robust. One important element necessary to make Rydberg atom quantum gates useful and scalable is a way to transfer information between gates via the electromagnetic field. Our research focuses on developing this piece of the Rydberg atom quantum computation toolbox. We are investigating a new type of quantum hybrid system that can be used to transfer quantum information between 2 distinct clouds of Rydberg atoms. Rydberg atoms can interact strongly with surface polaritons and the surface polaritons can be used to transfer information between 2 distinct points in space. Surface polaritons are mixtures of crystal vibrations and light that can propagate along the surface of a dielectric solid, such as quartz. The project will support 2 graduate students who will complete the work described. The research program will also enable undergraduate students to participate through the senior thesis and NSF-REU programs at OU. Our research group has been successful with undergraduate research participation as demonstrated by the completion of 31 different senior theses and NSF-REU projects over the last 10 years. To help recruit new students to and teach the students working on the project, the PI will include topics relevant to this research in the summer course in advanced research topics that he has taught in the past, interrupted only by a sabbatical, to faculty, graduate students and summer undergraduate research students, most recently at OU-Tulsa. Our work will also open, to our knowledge, an almost unexplored atom field interaction, that which occurs between Rydberg atoms and surface phonon polaritons. This area of research can contribute to a better understanding of surfaces and to the development of polaritronic devices. This is important because the frequencies spanned by polaritons are at the interface between photonic and electronic devices. This work will also help to develop readout schemes for other atomic based devices that can be integrated into atom chips and interfaced to conventional electronics.