Prof. Mikhail Lukin

Harvard University
Boston, MA

Quantum bits and quantum wires in solid state: a new interface of AMO and condensed matter physics

It is generally believed that complex environment represents the main obstacle for realization of ideas from quantum information science in solid-state systems. We show that that under certain conditions, the environment of single electron spins can be used as a very useful resource. Specifically we describe a technique that makes use of coherent manipulation of a single electron spin and individual nuclear spins in its local environment to create a controllable quantum register composed of a few quantum bits (qubits). Using optical and microwave manipulation of an electron spin associated with the Nitrogen-Vacancy (NV) color center in diamond, we demonstrate robust initialization of a two-qubit register at room temperature and transfer of arbitrary quantum states between electron and nuclear spin qubits. We further observe coherent interactions between individual nuclear spins, and demonstrate that they have excellent coherence properties. These registers can be used as a basis for scalable, optically coupled quantum information systems. As an outlook we describe our recent work on developing efficient optical interconnects between qubits based on combining ideas of cavity QED with nanowire surface plasmons.

Seminar schedule: http://www.physics.rutgers.edu/qcg/Seminars.html