Speaker
Description
Coupling a spin qubit to a mechanical system provides a route to prepare the mechanical system's motion in nonclassical states, such as a Fock state or an entangled state. Such quantum states have already been realized with superconducting qubits coupled to clamped mechanical oscillators; here, we are interested in achieving an analogous coupling between an atomic spin and a levitated oscillator, namely, between a trapped calcium ion and a silica nanoparticle in a linear Paul trap. Levitated systems offer extreme isolation from the environment and the possibility to dynamically adjust the oscillator's confining potential, providing a path for the generation of macroscopic quantum superpositions.
I will present recent steps in this direction: First, we have adapted techniques originally developed for trapped atomic ions, including detection via self-interference and sympathetic cooling, for the domain of nanoparticles [1,2]. Second, we have confined a nanoparticle oscillator in ultra-high vacuum and obtained quality factors above $10^{10}$, evidence of its extreme isolation from its environment [3]. Finally, we have trapped a calcium ion and a nanoparticle together in a linear Paul trap, taking advantage of a dual-frequency trapping scheme [4].
[1] L. Dania, K. Heidegger, D. S. Bykov, G. Cerchiari, G. Arenada, T. E. Northup, Phys. Rev. Lett. 129, 013601 (2022)
[2] D. S. Bykov, L. Dania, F. Goschin, T. E. Northup, Optica 10, 438 (2023)
[3] L. Dania, D. S. Bykov, F. Goschin, M. Teller, A. Kassid, T. E. Northup, Phys. Rev. Lett. 132, 133602 (2024)
[4] D. Bykov, L. Dania, F. Goschin, T. E. Northup, arXiv:2403.02034 (2024)
