We investigate numerically the time dependence of the multiple quantum coherences and entanglement in linear chains up to nine nuclear spins of 1/2 coupled by the dipole-dipole interactions. Two models are considered: (1) a spin chain with nearest-neighbor dipole -dipole interactions; (2) a more realistic model with interactions between all spins. It is shown that the entangled states appear between remote particles which do not interact directly (model 1), while the interaction between all spins (model 2) not always results in entanglement between remote spins.
Multiple quantum (MQ) NMR with a dipolar ordered initial state opens new possibilities for the exploration of many-spin entanglement. In this paper, we investigate many-spin entanglement in a gas of spin-carrying molecules (atoms) in nanocavities in the conditions of MQ NMR with a dipolar ordered initial state. The second moment of the distribution of the intensities of MQ NMR coherences, which provides a lower bound on the quantum Fisher information, is used for an estimate of the number of the entangled spins. Many-spin entanglement is investigated at different temperatures and different num…
Quantum algorithms could be much faster than classical ones in solving the factoring problem. Adiabatic quantum computation for this is an alternative approach other than Shor's algorithm. Here we report an improved adiabatic factoring algorithm and its experimental realization to factor the number 143 on a liquid crystal NMR quantum processor with dipole-dipole couplings. We believe this to be the largest number factored in quantum-computation realizations, which shows the practical importance of adiabatic quantum algorithms.
The efficiency of dipole-dipole coupling driven coherence transfer experiments in solid-state NMR spectroscopy of powder samples is limited by dispersion of the orientation of the internuclear vectors relative to the external magnetic field. Here we introduce general design principles and resulting pulse sequences that approach full polarization transfer efficiency for all crystallite orientations in a powder in magic-angle-spinning experiments. The methods compensate for the defocusing of coherence due to orientation dependent dipolar coupling interactions and inhomogeneous radio-frequency fi…
The multiple quantum (MQ) NMR dynamics in the system of equivalent spins with the dipolar ordered initial state is considered. The high symmetry of the MQ Hamiltonian is used in order to develop the analytical and numerical methods for an investigation of the MQ NMR dynamics in the systems consisting of hundreds of spins from "the first principles". We obtain the dependence of the intensities of the MQ NMR coherences on their orders (profiles of the MQ NMR coherences) for the systems of $200 - 600$ spins. It is shown that these profiles may be well approximated by the exponential distribution …
We investigate analytically and numerically the Multiple Quantum (MQ) NMR dynamics in dipolar ordered spin systems of nuclear spins 1/2 at a low temperatures. We suggest two different methods of MQ NMR. One of them is based on the measurement of the dipolar energy. The other method uses an additional resonance (π/4)_{y}-pulse after the preparation period of the standard MQ NMR experiment in solids and allows one to measure the Zeeman energy. The both considered methods are sensitive to the contribution of remote spins in the interaction and to the spin system structure. The QS method is sensit…
Quantum Information processing by NMR with small number of qubits is well established. Scaling to higher number of qubits is hindered by two major requirements (i) mutual coupling among qubits and (ii) qubit addressability. It has been demonstrated that mutual coupling can be increased by using residual dipolar couplings among spins by orienting the spin system in a liquid crystalline matrix. In such a case, the heteronuclear spins are weakly coupled but the homonuclear spins become strongly coupled. In such circumstances, the strongly coupled spins can no longer be treated as qubits. However,…
We show that it is possible to transfer two-bit information via encoding a single qubit in a conventional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiment with two very weakly polarized nuclear spins. Nevertheless, the experiment can not be regarded as a demonstration of superdense coding by means of NMR because it is based on the large number of molecules being involved in the ensemble state rather than the entanglement of the NMR states. Following the discussions, an entanglement witness, particularly applicable for NMR, is introduced based on separate and simultaneous measurement of the individu…
We present a new concept for homonuclear dipolar recoupling in magic-angle-spinning (MAS) solid-state NMR experiments which avoids the problem of dipolar truncation. This is accomplished through the introduction of a new NMR pulse sequence design principle: the triple oscillating field technique. We demonstrate this technique as an efficient means to accomplish broadband dipolar recoupling of homonuclear spins, while decoupling heteronuclear dipolar couplings and anisotropic chemicals shifts and retaining influence from isotropic chemical shifts. In this manner, it possible to synthesize Ising…
We use multiple quantum (MQ) NMR dynamics of a gas of spin-carrying molecules in nanocavities at high and low temperatures for an investigation of many-particle entanglement. A distribution of MQ NMR intensities is obtained at high and low temperatures in a system of 201 spins 1/2. The second moment of the distribution, which provides a lower bound on the quantum Fisher information, sheds light on the many-particle entanglement in the system. The dependence of the many-particle entanglement on the temperature is investigated. Almost all spins are entangled at low temperatures.
In this essay we discuss the issue of quantum information and recent nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments. We explain why these experiments should be regarded as quantum information processing (QIP) despite the fact that, in present liquid state NMR experiments, no entanglement is found. We comment on how these experiments contribute to the future of QIP and include a brief discussion on the origin of the power of quantum computers.
A dipolar recoupling technique is introduced as a new approach to quantum gate operation in solid-state NMR under magic angle spinning. The default-off property of inter-qubit interaction provides a simple way to controlled operation without requiring elaborate qubit-decoupling pulses.
We present a simple $^1$H NMR approach for characterizing intermediate to fast regime molecular motions using $^1$H time-domain NMR at low magnetic field. The method is based on a Goldmann Shen dipolar filter (DF) followed by a Mixed Magic Sandwich Echo (MSE). The dipolar filter suppresses the signals arising from molecular segments presenting sub kHz mobility, so only signals from mobile segments are detected. Thus, the temperature dependence of the signal intensities directly evidences the onset of molecular motions with rates higher than kHz. The DF-MSE signal intensity is described by an a…
We analyze the symmetry properties of the dipolar Hamiltonian as the main relaxation mechanism responsible for the observed NMR spectra of long lived states in methyl groups. Long lived states exhibit relaxation times that are considerably longer than the spin-lattice relaxation time, T1. The analysis brings clarity to the key components of the relaxation mechanism of long lived states by focusing exclusively on the symmetry of the spin Hamiltonian. Our study shows that the dipole-dipole coupling between protons of a methyl group and between the protons and an external spin are both symmetry b…
Random local measurements have recently been proposed to construct entanglement witnesses and thereby detect the presence of bipartite entanglement. We experimentally demonstrate the efficacy of one such scheme on a two-qubit NMR quantum information processor. We show that a set of three random local measurements suffices to detect the entanglement of a general two-qubit state. We experimentally generate states with different amounts of entanglement, and show that the scheme is able to clearly witness entanglement. We perform complete quantum state tomography for each state and compute state f…
A suitable NMR experiment in a one-dimensional dipolar coupled spin system allows one to reduce the natural many-body dynamics into effective one-body dynamics. We verify this in a polycrystalline sample of hydroxyapatite (HAp) by monitoring the excitation of NMR many-body superposition states: the multiple-quantum coherences. The observed effective one-dimensionality of HAp relies on the quasi 1d structure of the dipolar coupled network that, as we show here, is dynamically enhanced by the quantum Zeno effect. Decoherence is also probed through a Loschmidt echo experiment, where the time reve…
We describe the experimental implementation of a recently proposed quantum algorithm involving quantum entanglement at the level of two qubits using NMR. The algorithm solves a generalisation of the Deutsch problem and distinguishes between even and odd functions using fewer function calls than is possible classically. The manipulation of entangled states of the two qubits is essential here, unlike the Deutsch-Jozsa algorithm and the Grover's search algorithm for two bits.
In recent years, the performance of different entanglement indicators obtained directly from tomograms has been assessed in continuous-variable and hybrid quantum systems. In this paper, we carry out this task in the case of spin systems. We compute the entanglement indicators from actual experimental data obtained from three liquid-state NMR experiments, and compare them with standard entanglement measures calculated from the corresponding density matrices, both experimentally reconstructed and numerically computed. The gross features of entanglement dynamics and spin squeezing properties are…
A scheme to execute an n-bit Deutsch-Jozsa (D-J) algorithm using n qubits has been implemented for up to three qubits on an NMR quantum computer. For the one and two bit Deutsch problem, the qubits do not get entangled, hence the NMR implementation is achieved without using spin-spin interactions. It is for the three bit case, that the manipulation of entangled states becomes essential. The interactions through scalar J-couplings in NMR spin systems have been exploited to implement entangling transformations required for the three bit D-J algorithm.
Quantum correlations in multiple quantum (MQ) NMR experiments are investigated in two-spin systems (dimers). In the initial moment of time one spin is in a pure quantum polarized state and the other spin is in the thermodynamic equilibrium state defined by the temperature of the sample. MQ NMR dynamics of dimers is investigated. It is shown that MQ NMR coherences of only the zeroth and second orders emerge in such a system. The intensities of those coherences are calculated. Entangled states appear in the course of the system evolution in the MQ NMR experiment. The quantum discord is obtained …
We investigate the dynamics of entanglement and quantum discord of two qubits in liquid state homonuclear NMR. Applying a phenomenological description for NMR under relaxation process, and taking a group of typical parameters of NMR, we show that when a zero initial state $|00> $ experiences a relaxation process, its entanglement disappears completely after a sequence of so-called sudden deaths and revivals, while the quantum discord retains remarkable values after a sequence of oscillations. That is to say, the quantum discord is more robust than entanglement.
In the discussion about the quantumness of NMR computation a conclusion is done that computational states are separable and therefore can not be entangled. This conclusion is based on the assumption that the initial density matrix of an individual molecule coincides with whole sample molecules distribution over single molecule energy levels. This means that quantum stochasticity is replaced by classical stochasticity. In the present paper it is shown, that quantum NMR computation can create genuine entangled states if initial system states are thermodynamical equilibrium ones. A separability a…
Using an NMR quantum computer, we experimentally simulate the quantum phase transition of a Heisenberg spin chain. The Hamiltonian is generated by a multiple pulse sequence, the nuclear spin system is prepared in its (pseudo-pure) ground state and the effective Hamiltonian varied in such a way that the Heisenberg chain is taken from a product state to an entangled state and finally to a different product state.
Entanglement witnesses (EW) allow the detection of entanglement in a quantum system, from the measurement of some few observables. They do not require the complete determination of the quantum state, which is regarded as a main advantage. On this paper it is experimentally analyzed an entanglement witness recently proposed in the context of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) experiments to test it in some Bell-diagonal states. We also propose some optimal entanglement witness for Bell-diagonal states. The efficiency of the two types of EW's are compared to a measure of entanglement with tomograp…
Quantum computation requires efficient long-term storage devices to preserve quantum states. An attractive candidate for such storage devices is qubits connected to a common dissipative environment. The common environment gives rise to persistent entanglements in these qubit systems. Hence these systems act efficiently as a storage device of entanglement. However, the existence of a common environment often requires the physical proximity of the qubits and hence results in direct dipolar coupling between the qubits. In this work, we investigate the total effect of the dipolar coupling on the e…
We consider two qubits prepared in a product state and evolved under the magnetic dipolar interaction (MDI). We describe the dependence of the entanglement generated by the MDI with time, with the interaction parameters, and with the system's initial state, identifying the symmetry and coherence aspects of those initial configurations that yield the maximal entanglement. We also show how one can obtain maximum entanglement from the MDI applied to some families of partially entangled initial states.
Entanglement control of qubits in a photoisomerizing molecule is studied in the context of an NMR quantum computer by taking azobenzene as an example. Azobenzene has two different isomers, {\it{}trans}-azobenzene (TAB) and {\it{}cis}-azobenzene (CAB), which can be interconverted by photoisomerization. Changing molecular structure leads to change in the spin-spin coupling constant, and hence leads to change in entangling operation time. We first obtain stable structures of TAB and CAB by {\it ab initio} calculation. Then, we calculate the NMR spectra of these isomers and verify that they reprod…
A dipolar coupled spin system can achieve internal thermodynamic equilibrium states at negative absolute temperature. We study analytically and numerically the temperature dependence of the concurrence in a dipolar coupled spin-1/2 system in both non-zero and zero fields and show that, at negative temperatures, entangled states can exist even in zero magnetic field.
The quantum nature of bulk ensemble NMR quantum computing --the center of recent heated debate, is addressed. Concepts of the mixed state and entanglement are examined, and the data in a 2 qubit liquid NMR quantum computation are analyzed. It is pointed out that the key problem in the current debate is the understanding of entanglement in a mixed state system. The following points are concluded in this Letter: 1)Density matrix describes the "state" of an average particle in an ensemble. It can not describe the state of an individual particle in an ensemble in detail; 2) Entanglement is a prope…
The evolution of entanglement in a 3-spin chain with nearest-neighbor Heisenberg-XY interactions for different initial states is investigated here. In an NMR experimental implementation, we generate multipartite entangled states starting from initial separable pseudo-pure states by simulating nearest-neighbor XY interactions in a 3-spin linear chain of nuclear spin qubits. For simulating XY interactions, we follow algebraic method of Zhang et al. [Phys. Rev. A 72, 012331 (2005)]. Bell state between end qubits has been generated by using only the unitary evolution of the XY Hamiltonian. For gen…
Quantum teleportation, which depends on entangled states, is a fascinating subject and an important branch of quantum information processing. The present work reports the use of a dipolar spin thermal system as a quantum channel to perform quantum teleportation. Non-locality, tested by violation of Bell's inequality and thermal entanglement, measured by negativity, unquestionably show that even entangled states that do not violate Bell's inequality can be useful for teleportation.
We undertake experimental detection of the entanglement present in arbitrary three-qubit pure quantum states on an NMR quantum information processor. Measurements of only four observables suffice to experimentally differentiate between the six classes of states which are inequivalent under stochastic local operation and classical communication (SLOCC). The experimental realization is achieved by mapping the desired observables onto Pauli $z$-operators of a single qubit, which is directly amenable to measurement. The detection scheme is applied to known entangled states as well as to states ran…
Geometric phases have been used in NMR, to implement controlled phase shift gates for quantum information processing, only in weakly coupled systems in which the individual spins can be identified as qubits. In this work, we implement controlled phase shift gates in strongly coupled systems, by using non-adiabatic geometric phases, obtained by evolving the magnetization of fictitious spin-1/2 subspaces, over a closed loop on the Bloch sphere. The dynamical phase accumulated during the evolution of the subspaces, is refocused by a spin echo pulse sequence and by setting the delay of transition …
We experimentally demonstrate a new dynamic fashion of quantum Zeno effect in nuclear magnetic resonance systems. The frequent measurements are implemented through quantum entanglement between the target qubit(s) and the measuring qubit, which dynamically results from the unitary evolution of duration $τ_{m}$ due to dispersive-coupling. Experimental results testify the presence of "the critical measurement time effect", that is, the quantum Zeno effect does not occur when $τ_{m}$ takes the some critical values, even if the measurements are frequent enough. Moreover, we provide a first experime…
A model cluster, with a resonant electron spin surrounded with identical nuclear spins occupying the sites of a cubic lattice, and with dipolar coupling between the spins, is used for a theoretical investigation of the transient nutations induced by a strong oscillating field but disturbed by these local dipolar fields. An effective Hamiltonian valid at the time scale of the nutations is first established. An analytical expression for the Dipolar Coherence time tDC is derived by adapting Van Vleck's perturbative approach to the present situation, with weak rather than intermediate dipolar coup…
A phenomenological theory of spin-lattice relaxation of multiple-quantum coherences in systems of two dipolar coupled spins at low temperatures is developed. Intensities of multiple-quantum NMR coherences depending on the spin-lattice relaxation time are obtained. It is shown that the theory is also applicable to finite spin chains when the approximation of nearest neighbour interaction is used. An application of this theory to an estimation of the influence of decoherence processes on quantum entanglement and its fluctuations is briefly discussed.
A scheme for decoupling and selectively recoupling large networks of dipolar-coupled spins is proposed. The scheme relies on a combination of broadband, decoupling pulse sequences applied to all the nuclear spins with a band-selective pulse sequence for single spin rotations or recoupling. The evolution-time overhead required for selective coupling is independent of the number of spins, subject to time-scale constraints, for which we discuss the feasibility. This scheme may improve the scalability of solid-state-NMR quantum computing architectures.
We investigate the evolution of entanglement in multiple-quantum (MQ) NMR experiments in crystals with pairs of close nuclear spins-1/2. The initial thermodynamic equilibrium state of the system in a strong external magnetic field evolves under the non-secular part of the dipolar Hamiltonian. As a result, MQ coherences of the zeroth and plus/minus second orders appear. A simple condition for the emergence of entanglement is obtained. We show that the measure of the spin pair entanglement, concurrence, coincides qualitatively with the intensity of MQ coherences of the plus/minus second order an…
We demonstrate that CPMG and XYXY decoupling sequences with non-ideal $π$ pulses can reduce dipolar interactions between spins of the same species in solids. Our simulations of pulsed electron spin resonance (ESR) experiments show that $π$ rotations with small ($<$~10\%) imperfections refocus instantaneous diffusion. Here, the intractable N-body problem of interacting dipoles is approximated by the average evolution of a single spin in a changing mean field. These calculations agree well with experiments and do not require powerful hardware. Our results add to past attempts to explain similar …
Entanglement of dipole-dipole interacting spins 1/2 is usually investigated when the energy of interaction with an external magnetic field (the Zeeman energy) is greater than the energy of dipole interactions by three orders. Under this condition only a non-equilibrium state of the spin system, realized by pulse radiofrequence irradiations, results in entanglement. The present paper deals with the opposite case: the dipolar interaction energy is the order of magnitude or even larger than the Zeeman one. It was shown that entanglement appears under the thermodynamic equilibrium conditions and t…
We study the quantum critical effect enhanced spin-nematic squeezing and quantum Fisher information (QFI) in the spin-1 dipolar atomic Bose-Einstein condensate. We show that the quantum phase transitions can improve the squeezing and QFI in the nearby regime of critical point, and the Heisenberg-limited high-precision metrology can be obtained. The different properties of the ground squeezing and entanglement under even and odd number of atoms are further analyzed, by calculating the exact analytical expressions.We also demonstrate the squeezing and entanglement generated by the spin-mixing dy…
The enormous theoretical potential of Quantum Information Processing (QIP) is driving the pursuit for its practical realization by various physical techniques. Currently Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) has been the forerunner by demonstrating a majority of quantum algorithms. In NMR, spin systems consisting of coupled nuclear spins are utilized as qubits. In order to carry out QIP, a spin system has to meet two major requirements: (i) qubit addressability and (ii) mutual coupling among the qubits. It has been demonstrated that the magnitude of the mutual coupling among qubits can be increased…
We established important relationships between entanglement measures and the order parameter (spin polarization) in nuclear spin systems controlled by the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technique. Since spin polarization can be easily manipulated by the NMR technique, experimentalists are presented with an opportunity to study the dynamic properties of entanglement, i.e., the creation and evolution of entangled states. Our approach may constitute the basis for researching the relations between the entanglement measures and measurable parameters of order in other quantum systems.
Quantum correlations are investigated theoretically in a two-spin system with the dipole-dipole interactions in the NMR multiple-pulse spin-locking experiments. We consider two schemes of the multiple-pulse spin-locking. The first scheme consists of $π/2$-pulses only and the delays between the pulses can differ. The second scheme contains $φ$-pulses ($0<φ<π$) and has equal delays between them. We calculate entanglement for both schemes for an initial separable state. We show that entanglement is absent for the first scheme at equal delays between $π/2$-pulses at arbitraty temperatures. Entangl…
We employ a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) quantum information processor to simulate the ground state of an XXZ spin chain and measure its NMR analog of entanglement, or pseudo-entanglement. The observed pseudo-entanglement for a small-size system already displays singularity, a signature which is qualitatively similar to that in the thermodynamical limit across quantum phase transitions, including an infinite-order critical point. The experimental results illustrate a successful approach to investigate quantum correlations in many-body systems using quantum simulators.
A proposal for a scalable, solid-state implementation of a quantum computer is presented. Qubits are fluorine nuclear spins in a solid crystal of fluorapatite [Ca_5 F(PO_4)_3] with resonant frequencies separated by a large field gradient. Quantum logic is accomplished using nuclear-nuclear dipolar couplings with decoupling and selective recoupling RF pulse sequences. Magnetic resonance force microscopy is used for readout. As many as 300 qubits can be implemented in the laboratory extremes of T=10 mK and B_0=20 T with the existing sensitivity of force microscopy.
In this work, we have been working on the concept of quantum entanglement. At first, we studied the theory of entanglement in its characterization and measurement, introducing a new scheme for detection of entanglement. The new approach links molecular-spin entities involving nuclear spins to quantum computing as more appropriate physical systems of interest. Then, we continued with the realization of entanglement in experiments. NMR has been the first choice due to its well approved advantages for quantum computing. NMR, however, has not been an appropriate system for demonstrating entangled …
Multiple quantum (MQ) NMR methods \cite{Baum} are applied to the analysis of various problems of quantum information processing. It is shown that the two-spin/two-quantum Hamiltonian \cite{Baum} describing MQ NMR dynamics is related to the flip-flop Hamiltonian of a one-dimensional spin system in the approximation of the nearest neighbor interactions. As a result, it is possible to organize quantum state transfer along a linear chain. MQ NMR experiments are performed on quasi-one-dimensional chains of \BPChem{\^{19}F} nuclei in calcium fluorapatite \BPChem{Ca\_5(PO\_4)\_3F}. Relaxation of the …
Water is the most important solvent in nature. It is a crucial issue to study interactions among water molecules. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is one of the most powerful tools to detect magnetic interactions for the structure analysis of a molecule with broad applications. But conventional NMR spectroscopy requires macroscopic sample quantities with hampers in investigating nanoscale structures. Through quantum control of a single spin quantum sensor, magnetic resonance spectroscopy of nanoscale organic molecules and single molecules has been achieved. However, the measuremen…
Zero- to ultra-low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (ZULF NMR) provides a new regime for the measurement of nuclear spin-spin interactions free from effects of large magnetic fields, such as truncation of terms that do not commute with the Zeeman Hamiltonian. One such interaction, the magnetic dipole-dipole coupling, is a valuable source of spatial information in NMR, though many terms are unobservable in high-field NMR, and the coupling averages to zero under isotropic molecular tumbling. Under partial alignment, this information is retained in the form of so-called residual dipolar couplings…
We implement an iterative quantum state transfer exploiting the natural dipolar couplings in a spin chain of a liquid crystal NMR system. During each iteration a finite part of the amplitude of the state is transferred and by applying an external operation on only the last two spins the transferred state is made to accumulate on the spin at the end point. The transfer fidelity reaches one asymptotically through increasing the number of iterations. We also implement the inverted version of the scheme which can transfer an arbitrary state from the end point to any other position of the chain and…
In a closed quantum system of N coupled spins with magnetic quantum number I, there are about (2I + 1)^N constants of motion. However, the possibility of observing such quasi-invariant (QI) states in solid-like spin systems in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is not a strictly exact prediction. The aim of this work is to provide experimental evidence of several QI, in the proton NMR of small spin clusters, besides those already known Zeeman, and dipolar orders (strong and weak). We explore the spin states prepared with the Jeener-Broekaert pulse sequence by analyzing the time-domain signals yi…
Measuring the Hamiltonian of dipolar coupled spin systems is usually a difficult task due to the high complexity of their spectra. Currently, molecules with unknown geometrical structure and low symmetry are extremely tedious or impossible to analyze by sheer spectral fitting. We present a novel method that addresses the problem of spectral analysis, and report experimental results of extracting, by spectral fitting, the parameters of an oriented 6-spin system with very low symmetry in structure, without using a priori knowledge or assumptions on the molecular geometry or order parameters. The…
The existence of quantum correlation (as revealed by quantum discord), other than entanglement and its role in quantum-information processing (QIP), is a current subject for discussion. In particular, it has been suggested that this nonclassical correlation may provide computational speedup for some quantum algorithms. In this regard, bulk nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been successfully used as a test bench for many QIP implementations, although it has also been continuously criticized for not presenting entanglement in most of the systems used so far. In this paper, we report a theoret…
A connection of the Wigner-Yanase skew information and multiple quantum (MQ) NMR coherences is considered at different temperatures and evolution times of nuclear spins with dipole-dipole interactions in MQ NMR experiments in solids. It is shown that the Wigner-Yanase skew information at temperature $T$ is equal to the double second moment of the MQ NMR spectrum at the double temperature for any evolution times. A comparison of the many-spin entanglement obtained with the Wigner-Yanase information and the Fisher information is conducted.
In spectroscopy, it is conventional to treat pulses much stronger than the linewidth as delta-functions. In NMR, this assumption leads to the prediction that pi pulses do not refocus the dipolar coupling. However, NMR spin echo measurements in dipolar solids defy these conventional expectations when more than one pi pulse is used. Observed effects include a long tail in the CPMG echo train for short delays between pi pulses, an even-odd asymmetry in the echo amplitudes for long delays, an unusual fingerprint pattern for intermediate delays, and a strong sensitivity to pi-pulse phase. Experimen…