An experimental demonstration of a novel all-optical technique for loading ion traps, that has particular application to microtrap architectures, is presented. The technique is based on photo-ionisation of an atomic beam created by pulsed laser ablation of a calcium target, and provides improved temporal control compared to traditional trap loading methods. Ion loading rates as high as 125 ions per second have so far been observed. Also described are observations of trap loading where Rydberg state atoms are photo-ionised by the ion Doppler cooling laser.
We calculate the loading efficiency and cooling rates in a bichromatic optical microtrap, where the optical potentials are generated by evanescent waves of cavity fields at a dielectric-vacuum interface. The cavity modified nonconservative dynamic light forces lead to efficient loading of the atoms as well as cooling without the need for spontaneous emission. Steady-state temperatures well below the trap depth, reaching the motional quantum regime, yield very long capturing times for a neutral atom.
Lithographically fabricated circuit patterns can provide magnetic guides and microtraps for cold neutral atoms. By combining several such structures on the same ceramic substrate, we have realized the first ``atom chips'' that permit complex manipulations of ultracold trapped atoms or de Broglie wavepackets. We show how to design magnetic potentials from simple conductor patterns and we describe an efficient trap loading procedure in detail. Applying the design guide, we describe some new microtrap potentials, including a trap which reaches the Lamb-Dicke regime for rubidium atoms in all three…
We theoretically investigate the use of fast pulsed two-qubit gates for trapped ion quantum computing in a two-dimensional microtrap architecture. In one dimension, such fast gates are optimal when employed between nearest neighbours, and we examine the generalisation to a two-dimensional geometry. We demonstrate that fast pulsed gates are capable of implementing high-fidelity entangling operations between ions in neighbouring traps faster than the trapping period, with experimentally demonstrated laser repetition rates. Notably, we find that without increasing the gate duration, high-fidelity…
Most attempts to produce a scalable quantum information processing platform based on ion traps have focused on the shuttling of ions in segmented traps. We show that an architecture based on an array of microtraps with fast gates will outperform architectures based on ion shuttling. This system requires higher power lasers, but does not require the manipulation of potentials or shuttling of ions. This improves optical access, reduces the complexity of the trap, and reduces the number of conductive surfaces close to the ions. The use of fast gates also removes limitations on gate time. The perf…
We review recent experimental progress towards quantum information processing and quantum simulation using neutral atoms in two-dimensional (2D) arrays of optical microtraps as 2D registers of qubits. We describe a scalable quantum information architecture based on micro-fabricated optical elements, simultaneously targeting the important issues of single-site addressability and scalability. This approach provides flexible and integrable configurations for quantum state storage, manipulation, and retrieval. We present recent experimental results on the initialization and coherent one-qubit rota…
Miniaturized ion trap arrays with many trap segments present a promising architecture for scalable quantum information processing. The miniaturization of segmented linear Paul traps allows partitioning the microtrap in different storage and processing zones. The individual position control of many ions - each of them carrying qubit information in its long-lived electronic levels - by the external trap control voltages is important for the implementation of next generation large-scale quantum algorithms. We present a novel scalable microchip multi-segmented ion trap with two different adjacent …
We propose a new design for a quantum information processor where qubits are encoded into Hyperfine states of ions held in a linear array of individually tailored microtraps and sitting in a spatially varying magnetic field. The magnetic field gradient introduces spatially dependent qubit transition frequencies and a type of spin-spin interaction between qubits. Single and multi-qubit manipulation is achieved via resonant microwave pulses as in liquid-NMR quantum computation while the qubit readout and reset is achieved through trapped-ion fluorescence shelving techniques. By adjusting the mic…
We describe rapid, random-access loading of a two-dimensional (2D) surface-electrode ion-trap array based on two crossed photo-ionization laser beams. With the use of a continuous flux of pre-cooled neutral atoms from a remotely-located source, we achieve loading of a single ion per site while maintaining long trap lifetimes and without disturbing the coherence of an ion quantum bit in an adjacent site. This demonstration satisfies all major criteria necessary for loading and reloading extensive 2D arrays, as will be required for large-scale quantum information processing. Moreover, the alread…
Two-dimensional arrays of optical micro-traps created by microoptical elements present a versatile and scalable architecture for neutral atom quantum information processing, quantum simulation, and the manipulation of ultra-cold quantum gases. In this article, we demonstrate advanced capabilities of this approach by introducing novel techniques and functionalities as well as the combined operation of previously separately implemented functions. We introduce piezo-actuator based transport of atom ensembles over distances of more than one trap separation, examine the capabilities of rapid atom t…
Quantum mechanics dominates various effects in modern research from miniaturizing electronics, up to potentially ruling solid-state physics, quantum chemistry and biology. To study these effects experimental quantum systems may provide the only effective access. Seminal progress has been achieved in a variety of physical platforms, highlighted by recent applications. Atomic ions are known for their unique controllability and are identical by nature, as evidenced, e.g., by performing among the most precise atomic clocks and providing the basis for one-dimensional simulators. However, controllab…
Large arrays of individually controlled atoms trapped in optical tweezers are a very promising platform for quantum engineering applications. However, to date, only disordered arrays have been demonstrated, due to the non-deterministic loading of the traps. Here, we demonstrate the preparation of fully loaded, two-dimensional arrays of up to 50 microtraps each containing a single atom, and arranged in arbitrary geometries. Starting from initially larger, half-filled matrices of randomly loaded traps, we obtain user-defined target arrays at unit filling. This is achieved with a real-time contro…
We demonstrate loading of ions into a surface-electrode trap (SET) from a remote, laser-cooled source of neutral atoms. We first cool and load $\sim$ $10^6$ neutral $^{88}$Sr atoms into a magneto-optical trap from an oven that has no line of sight with the SET. The cold atoms are then pushed with a resonant laser into the trap region where they are subsequently photoionized and trapped in an SET operated at a cryogenic temperature of 4.6 K. We present studies of the loading process and show that our technique achieves ion loading into a shallow (15 meV depth) trap at rates as high as 125 ions/…
Quantum-mechanical principles can be used to process information (QIP). In one approach, linear arrays of trapped, laser cooled ion qubits (two-level quantum systems) are confined in segmented multi-zone electrode structures. The ion trap approach to QIP requires trapping and control of numerous ions in electrode structures with many trapping zones. I investigated microfabrication of structures to trap, transport and couple large numbers of ions. Using 24Mg+ I demonstrated loading and transport between zones in microtraps made of boron doped silicon. This thesis describes the fundamentals of i…
The Mott insulator state created by loading an atomic Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) into an optical lattice may be used as a means to prepare a register of atomic qubits in a quantum computer. Such architecture requires a lattice commensurately filled with atoms, which corresponds to the insulator state only in the limit of zero inter-well tunneling. We show that a lattice with spatial inhomogeneity created by a quadratic magnetic trapping potential can be used to isolate a subspace in the center which is impervious to hole-hoping. Components of the wavefunction with more than one atom in any…
In this study, we report the first Cu-filled through silicon via (TSV) integrated ion trap. TSVs are placed directly underneath electrodes as vertical interconnections between ion trap and a glass interposer, facilitating the arbitrary geometry design with increasing electrodes numbers and evolving complexity. The integration of TSVs reduces the form factor of ion trap by more than 80%, minimizing parasitic capacitance from 32 to 3 pF. A low RF dissipation is achieved in spite of the absence of ground screening layer. The entire fabrication process is on 12-inch wafer and compatible with estab…
We demonstrate trapping in a surface-electrode ion trap fabricated in a 90-nm CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) foundry process utilizing the top metal layer of the process for the trap electrodes. The process includes doped active regions and metal interconnect layers, allowing for co-fabrication of standard CMOS circuitry as well as devices for optical control and measurement. With one of the interconnect layers defining a ground plane between the trap electrode layer and the p-type doped silicon substrate, ion loading is robust and trapping is stable. We measure a motional heat…
Recent advances in quantum information processing with trapped ions have demonstrated the need for new ion trap architectures capable of holding and manipulating chains of many (>10) ions. Here we present the design and detailed characterization of a new linear trap, microfabricated with scalable complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) techniques, that is well-suited to this challenge. Forty-four individually controlled DC electrodes provide the many degrees of freedom required to construct anharmonic potential wells, shuttle ions, merge and split ion chains, precisely tune secular mode…
