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arXiv:1312.7182 · Science

Two-particle quantum interference in tunnel-coupled optical tweezers

Adam M. Kaufman, Brian Lester, Collin Reynolds, Michael L. Wall, Michael Foss‐Feig, Kaden R. A. Hazzard, Ana María Rey, Cindy A. Regal

Published Jun 27, 2014• 223 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

The quantum statistics of atoms is typically observed in the behavior of an ensemble via macroscopic observables. However, quantum statistics modifies the behavior of even two particles. Here, we demonstrate near-complete control over all the internal and external degrees of freedom of two laser-cooled (87)Rb atoms trapped in two optical tweezers. This controllability allows us to observe signatures of indistinguishability via two-particle interference. Our work establishes laser-cooled atoms in optical tweezers as a promising route to bottom-up engineering of scalable, low-entropy quantum systems.

DOI
10.1126/science.1250057

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The quantum statistics of atoms is typically observed in the behavior of an ensemble via macroscopic observables. However, quantum statistics modifies the behavior of even two particles. Here, we demonstrate near-complete control over all the internal and external degrees of freedom of two laser-cooled (87)Rb atoms trapped in two optical tweezers. This controllability allows us to observe signatures of indistinguishability via two-particle interference. Our work establishes laser-cooled atoms in optical tweezers as a promising route to bottom-up engineering of scalable, low-entropy quantum systems.
In this thesis, I describe the development of and scientific results from a new platform for creating ultracold atoms via single-atom control. We employ Raman-sideband cooling to isolated bosonic 87Rb atoms confined within sub-micron optical tweezers, yielding single particle three- dimensional ground-state fractions of 90%. We create multiple, independent, mobile optical tweezers, which simultaneously allows multi-particle studies with single-atom microscopy and highly tunable length-scales. We employ this toolset in both of the main experiments discussed in this thesis. In one experiment, we observe Hong-Ou-Mandel interference of two bosonic atoms, each of which is independently prepared in spatially separated optical tweezers. The interference we observe is a direct consequence of the purity of the single particle quantum states produced, and the indistinguishability of the atoms. In a second experiment, we introduce a spin-degree of freedom and exploit spin-exchange dynamics, driven by the quantum-statistics of the particles, to create a spin-entangled pair of spatially separated atoms.
We investigate the photoassociation dynamics of exactly two laser-cooled ^{85}Rb atoms in an optical tweezer and reveal fundamentally different behavior to photoassociation in many-atom ensembles. We observe nonexponential decay in our two-atom experiment that cannot be described by a single rate coefficient and find its origin in our system's pair correlation. This is in stark contrast to many-atom photoassociation dynamics, which are governed by decay with a single rate coefficient. We also investigate photoassociation in a three-atom system, thereby probing the transition from two-atom dynamics to many-atom dynamics. Our experiments reveal additional reaction dynamics that are only accessible through the control of single atoms and suggest photoassociation could measure pair correlations in few-atom systems. It further showcases our complete control over the quantum state of individual atoms and molecules, which provides information unobtainable from many-atom experiments.
In this talk, I will discuss our pathway toward quantum simulations and computation with neutral atoms in arrays of optical tweezers cooled to their motional ground state. Initially, I will talk about two-atom interference experiments, e.g. the atomic analog to the Hong-Ou-Mandel effect, and how we create spin entangled states. I will then talk about how we scale our system to accommodate 80 single atoms, loaded into 100 traps while maintaining full single-atom control. For this efficient loading process, we control atomic collisions in the tweezers using grey molasses. When combined with ground-state cooling and atom-rearranging, this should allow us to form a micro-BEC with controlled atom number and entropy.
Molecules, with their rich spectrum of internal states as well as strong and tunable dipolar interactions, are promising candidates for a broad range of experiments including quantum information, quantum chemistry, precision measurement and probing physics beyond the Standard Model, and quantum simulation of interacting many-body systems. At the same time, the complexity that made them attractive also poses a significant challenge to achieve a high level of quantum control that is required in many of their potential applications. Multiple approaches are being pursued for full quantum control of molecules including association of atomic gases and direct cooling of molecules, yet it remains challenging to control molecules at single particle level due to the difficulty in tuning the atom-atom interaction and laser cooling of molecules. In this thesis, we achieved full control on a single weakly bound ground state molecule created by coherent optical association from single atoms. We first discuss the trapping and imaging of the atoms in the optical tweezer and the cooling into a single quantum state in order to achieve the quantum control of atoms. Combining this control with the resolution and flexibility of tweezers. we developed a versatile platform to study interactions between single atoms and properties of single molecules, using precise optical spectroscopy on pairs of atoms in the tweezer. Based on these studies, we proposed a promising pathway for coherent all-optical creation of molecules and experimentally demonstrated full control on the molecule including all degrees of freedom.
The ability to control particles in the quantum regime at the individual particle level is a challenge at the frontier of quantum science and engineering. Of the many quantum objects developed in pursuit of this goal, ultracold molecules host rich internal states and unique inter-particle interactions that could lend themselves useful to a broad range of applications including quantum computing and simulation, precision measurements and quantum chemistry. In this thesis we present a bottom-up approach to creating single molecules in individual optical tweezers. In particular, single atoms of two different species are first trapped and cooled in individual optical tweezers then brought together to form a single molecule coherently. Using this approach, we have successfully created an array of fully quantum-state-controlled polar molecules. The quantum state – including both internal and external states – of the resulting molecules are known to us, and is the first time single neutral molecules have been under full quantum state control. This platform offers exciting new opportunities to harness the rich properties of molecules in many quantum science applications.
Coherent manipulation of matter waves, a distinctive hallmark of quantum mechanics, is fundamental to modern quantum technologies. Spatial adiabatic passage (SAP) is a prime example of this phenomenon, where a wave packet is transferred between two uncoupled localized modes by adjusting the tunneling coupling to an intermediate third mode in a counterintuitive sequence. Although this concept was introduced over two decades ago, its observation was previously limited to electromagnetic waves. In this study, we demonstrate this quantum interference effect using massive particles that tunnel between three micro-optical traps ("optical tweezers"). We begin by preparing ultracold fermionic atoms in low vibrational eigenstates of one trap, followed by manipulating the distance between the traps to execute the SAP protocol. We observe a smooth and high-efficiency transfer of atoms between the two outer traps, with a very low population remaining in the central trap. These findings open possibilities for advanced control schemes in optical tweezer array platforms.