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arXiv:2205.05936 · Physical Review Research

Quantum synchronization of a single trapped-ion qubit

Liyun Zhang, Zhao Wang, Yucheng Wang, Junhua Zhang, Zhigang Wu, Jianwen Jie, Yao Lu

Published Sep 25, 2023• 38 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Synchronizing a few-level quantum system is of fundamental importance to the understanding of synchronization in the deep quantum regime. Whether a two-level system, the smallest quantum system, can be synchronized has been theoretically debated for the past several years. Here, for the first time, we demonstrate that a qubit can indeed be synchronized to an external driving signal by using a trapped-ion system. By engineering fully controllable gain and damping processes, an ion qubit is locked to the driving signal and oscillates in phase. Moreover, upon tuning the parameters of the driving signal, we observe characteristic features of the Arnold tongue as well. Our measurements agree remarkably well with numerical simulations based on recent theory on qubit synchronization. By synchronizing the basic unit of quantum information, our study opens up the possibility of exploring the application of quantum synchronization to quantum information processing in the near future.

DOI
10.1103/physrevresearch.5.033209

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Synchronizing a few-level quantum system is of fundamental importance to the understanding of synchronization in the deep quantum regime. Whether a two-level system, the smallest quantum system, can be synchronized has been theoretically debated for the past several years. Here, for the first time, we demonstrate that a qubit can indeed be synchronized to an external driving signal by using a trapped-ion system. By engineering fully controllable gain and damping processes, an ion qubit is locked to the driving signal and oscillates in phase. Moreover, upon tuning the parameters of the driving signal, we observe characteristic features of the Arnold tongue as well. Our measurements agree remarkably well with numerical simulations based on recent theory on qubit synchronization. By synchronizing the basic unit of quantum information, our study opens up the possibility of exploring the application of quantum synchronization to quantum information processing in the near future.
Synchronization is a hallmark of collective behavior that emerges when nonlinear systems interact, spanning scales from mechanical oscillators to planetary orbits. As a universal phenomenon, it underpins the study of complex systems and has far-reaching technological implications. While classical synchronization has a long and rich history, it has not been observed experimentally between multiple quantum limit-cycle oscillators despite a decade of theoretical investigations. We realize synchronization between two quantum van der Pol oscillators by engineering dissipation in a mixed-isotope trapped-ion quantum simulator. The synchronized state is encoded in a fixed relative phase between the oscillators that is inaccessible to individual measurements and revealed only through joint readout of both oscillators, in stark contrast to the system in the (deterministic) classical limit where synchronization can be observed via individual phase measurements. We further show that the relative phase can be precisely controlled and that the chain of two oscillators can synchronize to an external field, suggesting applications in sensing. Our results provide a promising pathway for studying more complex synchronized quantum dynamics beyond two oscillators, where a theoretical treatment becomes increasingly challenging, and it remains to be understood whether genuinely quantum features persist in such cases.
Synchronizing a few-level quantum system is of fundamental importance to the understanding of synchronization in the deep quantum regime. We investigate quantum phase synchronization of a two-level system (qubit) driven by a semiclassical laser field, in the presence of a general non-Markovian dissipative environment. The phase preference of the qubit is demonstrated through Husimi Q-function, and the existence of a limit cycle is also shown in our system. Synchronization of the qubit is quantified using the shifted phase distribution. The signature of quantum phase synchronization viz the Arnold tongue is obtained from the maximal value of the shifted phase distribution. Two distinct types of qubit dynamics is considered depending on the reservoir correlation time being very short and a situation when bath correlation time is finite. In the Markov regime of the environment, the phase preference of the qubit goes away in the long time limit, whereas the long-time phase localization persists in the non-Markovian regime. We also plot the maximum of the shifted phase distribution in two ways: (a) by varying the detuning and laser driving strength, and (b) by varying the system-bath coupling and laser driving strength. Various system-environment parameters determine the synchronization regions and the qubit phase synchronization is shown to be enhanced in the non-Markov regime.
Synchronizing a few-level quantum system is of fundamental importance to the understanding of synchronization in the deep quantum regime. We investigate quantum phase synchronization of a two-level system (qubit) driven by a semiclassical laser field, in the presence of a dissipative environment having finite bath correlation. The phase preference of the qubit is demonstrated through the Husimi Q-function, and the existence of a limit cycle is also shown in our system. Synchronization of the qubit is quantified using the shifted phase distribution. The signature of quantum phase synchronization viz. the Arnold tongue is obtained from the maximal value of the shifted phase distribution. Two distinct types of qubit dynamics are considered depending on the reservoir correlation time being very short and a situation when bath correlation time is finite. When the reservoir’s frequency spectrum is broad and the bath correlation time is short, the qubit’s phase preference vanishes in the long-time limit. In contrast, a finite bath correlation time and narrow spectral density result in persistent long-time phase localization. The synchronization regions are governed by system–environment parameters, with qubit phase synchronization being enhanced when the reservoir exhibits a narrow frequency spectrum.
This study explores the dual role of a squeezed reservoir in controlling the quantum phase synchronization of a driven two-level system. We first demonstrate, through a Liouvillian eigen-spectrum analysis, that the squeezed reservoir can induce a stable limit cycle, transforming the passive TLS into a genuine self-sustained oscillator. This enables a qualitative transition from a weak ``forced response" to a robust, high-quality synchronization (or entrainment). This enhancement is characterized not only by a greater degree of phase locking but also by an increased frequency selectivity, manifested as a narrower Arnold tongue. More strikingly, we reveal that the squeezing angle acts as a control parameter to actively suppress synchronization. By tuning this angle, the reservoir can drive the system into a classical mixed state, inducing a quantum synchronization blockade via the quenching of steady-state coherence. Our findings establish squeezed-reservoir engineering as a versatile strategy for actively modulating quantum synchronization, with feasible implementations in circuit quantum electrodynamics.
Recently, it was shown that dissipative quantum systems with three or more levels are able to synchronize to an external signal. Some researchers have stated that this is not possible for two-level systems, as those systems lack a stable limit cycle in unperturbed dynamics, but others have demonstrated, under a different definition of synchronization, that it is possible in qubits in models which include other elements. We show how a quantum two-level system can be understood as containing a valid limit cycle as the starting point of synchronization and that it can synchronize its dynamics to an external weak signal. This is demonstrated by analytically solving the Lindblad equation of a two-level system coupled to an environment, determining the steady state. This is a mixed state with contributions from many pure states, each of which provides a valid limit cycle. We show that this is sufficient to phase lock the dynamics to a weak external signal, hence clarifying synchronization in two-level systems. We use the Husimi QQQ representation to analyze the synchronization region, defining a synchronization measure which characterizes the strength of the phase locking. Also, we study the stability of the limit cycle and its deformation with the strength of the signal in terms of the components of the Bloch vector of the system. Finally, we generalize a model of the three-level system to illustrate how the stationary fixed point of that model can be changed into a limit cycle similar to the one that we describe for the two-level system.
Synchronization has recently been explored deep in the quantum regime with elementary few-level quantum oscillators such as qudits and weakly pumped quantum van der Pol oscillators. To engineer more complex quantum synchronizing systems, it is practically relevant to study composite oscillators built from basic quantum units that are commonly available and offer high controllability. Here we consider a minimal model for a composite oscillator consisting of two interacting qubits coupled to separate baths and show that this system exhibits a wide variety of synchronizing behaviors. We study the phase response of the constituent qubits as well as the system as a whole, when one of the qubits is weakly driven. We consider the thermal baths to have positive as well as effective negative temperatures and discover effects that occur only when the temperatures of the baths for the two qubits are of opposite signs. We propose and analyze a circuit quantum electrodynamics implementation of this model, which exploits recent advances in dissipation engineering to realize effective negative temperature baths. Our work demonstrates the potential for assembling complex quantum synchronizing systems from basic building units, which is of pragmatic importance for advancing the field of quantum synchronization.