By leveraging a GPU-accelerated Schrödinger-Poisson (SP) solver, we characterize exchange coupling in a hole spin double-qubit device involving a double quantum dot (DQD) system formed inside a 5-gate silicon fin field-effect transistor (FinFET) similar to real experimental structures. The self-consistent SP simulations rely on a finite difference discretization of the 3D volume and on a Luttinger-Kohn 6x6 kp Hamiltonian accounting for magnetic fields and strain distribution. They return the gate-induced confined electronic states and the corresponding electrostatic potential hosting the DQD. These quantities serve as inputs to a two-particle Hamiltonian that is constructed from single-particle Slater determinants through the configuration interaction (CI) method. By diagonalizing this two-particle Hamiltonian, the eigenstates and eigenenergies of the DQD system are obtained, together with their exchange coupling. We show that our simulation framework, using a reduced number of basis states, is capable of reproducing the magneto-electrostatic behavior of the devices of interest, as predicted from theory and observed experimentally. We finally leverage our approach to determine the optimal operating conditions of a two-qubit quantum logic gate implemented in a Si FinFET structure.
By leveraging a GPU-accelerated Schrödinger-Poisson (SP) solver, we characterize exchange coupling in a hole spin double-qubit device involving a double quantum dot (DQD) system formed inside a 5-gate silicon fin field-effect transistor (FinFET) similar to real experimental structures. The self-consistent SP simulations rely on a finite difference discretization of the 3D volume and on a Luttinger-Kohn 6x6 kp Hamiltonian accounting for magnetic fields and strain distribution. They return the gate-induced confined electronic states and the corresponding electrostatic potential hosting the DQD. These quantities serve as inputs to a two-particle Hamiltonian that is constructed from single-particle Slater determinants through the configuration interaction (CI) method. By diagonalizing this two-particle Hamiltonian, the eigenstates and eigenenergies of the DQD system are obtained, together with their exchange coupling. We show that our simulation framework, using a reduced number of basis states, is capable of reproducing the magneto-electrostatic behavior of the devices of interest, as predicted from theory and observed experimentally. We finally leverage our approach to determine the optimal operating conditions of a two-qubit quantum logic gate implemented in a Si FinFET structure.
The spin of an electron confined in semiconductor quantum dots is currently a promising candidate for quantum bit (qubit) implementations. Taking advantage of the existing CMOS integration technologies, such devices can offer a platform for large scale quantum computation. However, a quantum mechanical framework bridging a device's physical design and operational parameters to the qubit's energy space is lacking. Furthermore, the spin to charge coupling introduced by intrinsic or induced spin-orbit interaction (SOI) exposes the qubits to charge noise compromising their coherence properties and inducing quantum gate errors. We present here a comodeling framework for double quantum dot (DQD) devices and their charge noise environments. We use a combination of an electrostatic potential solver, full configuration interaction quantum mechanical methods, and two-level-fluctuator models to study the quantum gate performance in realistic device designs and operation conditions. We utilize the developed models together alongside the single electron solutions of the quantum dots to simulate one- and two-qubit gates in the presence of charge noise. We find an inverse correlation between quantum gate errors and quantum dot confinement frequencies. We calculate X-gate fidelities >97 in the simulated Si-MOS devices at a typical TLF density of ${10}^{11}\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}2}$. We also find that exchange driven two-qubit SWAP gates show higher sensitivity to charge noise with fidelities down to 91 in the presence of the same density of TLFs. We further investigate the one- and two-qubit gate fidelities at different TLF densities. We find that given the small size of the quantum dots, sensitivity of a quantum gate to the distance between the noise sources and the quantum dot creates a strong variability in the quantum gate fidelities, which can compromise the device yields in scaled qubit technologies.
We discuss the microscopic modeling of exchange interactions between double semiconductor quantum dots used as spin qubits. Starting from a reference full configuration interaction (CI) calculation for the two-particle wave functions, we build a reduced basis set of dressed states that can describe the ground-state singlets and triplets over the whole operational range with as few as 100 basis functions (as compared to a few thousands for the full CI). This enables fast explorations of the exchange interactions landscape as well as efficient time-dependent simulations. We apply this methodology to a double hole quantum dot in germanium and discuss the physics of exchange interactions in this system. We show that the net exchange splitting results from a complex interplay among interdot tunneling, Coulomb exchange, and correlations. We analyze, moreover, the effects of confinement, strains, and Rashba interactions on the anisotropic exchange and singlet-triplet mixings at finite magnetic field. We finally illustrate the relevance of this methodology for time-dependent calculations on a singlet-triplet qubit.
Silicon spin qubits are promising for large-scale quantum-computer integration because they can fully leverage the well-developed semiconductor infrastructure. However, the low fidelity of two-qubit entanglement gates remains a key barrier to large-scale integrations. Recent simulations of silicon spin-qubit two-qubit gates have been performed on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platforms, while nanosheet-based charge-qubit work has been limited to single-qubit operation using a two-dimensional Schrödinger approximation. In this work, we study silicon spin-qubit double quantum dots built on nanosheet technology using the Quantum Technology Computer-Aided Design (QTCAD) simulation suite to run three-dimensional Poisson and Schroedinger solvers, followed by a many-body solver to extract exchange interactions. We evaluate the exchange energy sensitivity to process and bias variations and then use QuTiP to solve the master equation for a two-qubit gate. The results show that millivolt-level bias variations at the plunger and middle barrier gates can reduce the gate fidelity below 99%, a common threshold target for many fault-tolerant quantum-computing algorithms. Gate-referred 1/f charge-noise effects are also analyzed through the resulting coherence time.
We describe in detail a full configuration interaction (CI) method designed to analyze systems of quantum dots. This method is capable of exploring large regions of parameter space, like more approximate approaches such as Heitler London and Hund Mulliken, though it is not limited to weakly coupled dots. In particular, this method is well-suited to the analysis of solid state quantum-dot-based qubits, and we consider the case of a double quantum dot (DQD) singlet-triplet qubit. Past analyses have used techniques which are either substantially restricted in the regimes they can be used, or device specific and unsuited to exploration of a large regions of parameter space. We analyze how the DQD exchange energy, which is central to the operation of qubit rotation gates, depends on a generic set of system parameters including magnetic field, DQD detuning, dot size, and dot separation. We discuss the implications of these results to the construction of real devices. We provide a benchmark of the CI by directly comparing results from the CI method with exact results for two electrons in a single parabolic potential (dot).
Spin qubits in gate-defined semiconductor quantum dots are a promising platform for realising a scalable quantum computer. This platform encodes quantum information into the intrinsic angular momentum (spin) of individual electrons or holes. In particular, hole spins in quantum dots enable the possibility of all-electrical spin control due to their intrinsic spin-orbit coupling. One important criterion of a quantum computer is the ability to reliably read out the state of the qubit. This is done by mapping spin information to the charge degree of freedom, combined with a method for charge detection. Charge detection can be facilitated by coupling a resonator directly to the quantum dot gate or to a charge sensor and measuring the resonator's phase or amplitude response. In this thesis, we describe a set of experiments relating to the implementation of hole spin qubit readout with superconducting resonators. First, we study gate-based charge sensing in a Si fin field-effect transistor (finFET) device using a superconducting NbN nanowire resonator. We find that the resonator amplifies capacitive crosstalk when electrical control pulses are applied to gate electrodes in this device. This occurs whenever a spectral component of qubit control pulses overlaps with the resonance frequency, which we show may occur for both baseband and radio-frequency (RF) drive signals. We quantify this crosstalk in a transport-based method, and attribute its source to the capacitance between the bondpads of neighbouring gate electrodes. In a second experiment, we use an RF charge sensor with the same nanowire technology to read out hole spin qubits formed in the quantum well of a Ge/SiGe heterostructure. A screening layer approach is used to facilitate RF matching due to large RF dissipation found in the heterostructure. We implement a double-latched readout scheme in this system to reduce errors arising from both spin and charge decay during readout. The spin-to-charge conversion process and its dependence on magnetic field orientation is studied. Spin and charge decay processes arising after spin-to-charge conversion are mitigated by choosing an optimal working point for the field orientation, field amplitude and readout pulse times. By doing so, we achieve an average single-shot state-preparation-and-measurement fidelity of 97%, primarily bounded by imperfect state preparation and limited signal-to-noise ratio. Finally, we study coplanar waveguide resonators fabricated from NbN. We investigate the feasibility of integrating this type of resonator onto the same chip as the Si finFET quantum dots. We then develop a novel resonator readout technique by the interference of two microwave sidebands. We demonstrate the insensitivity of this technique to common-mode phase and amplitude noise both theoretically and experimentally. This technique is then used to study resonator noise arising from two-level system defects. These results highlight both the practical constraints and the potential for achieving high readout fidelities using resonator-based hole spin qubit readout. This work establishes a blueprint for mitigating resonator-induced crosstalk and enabling high-fidelity readout in lossy materials by incorporating a screening layer.
We theoretically study a double-quantum-dot hydrogen molecule in the GaAs conduction band as the basic elementary gate for a quantum computer, with the electron spins in the dots serving as qubits. Such a two-dot system provides the necessary two-qubit entanglement required for quantum computation. We determine the excitation spectrum of two horizontally coupled quantum dots with two confined electrons, and study its dependence on an external magnetic field. In particular, we focus on the splitting of the lowest singlet and triplet states, the double occupation probability of the lowest states, and the relative energy scales of these states. We point out that at zero magnetic field it is difficult to have both a vanishing double occupation probability for a small error rate and a sizable exchange coupling for fast gating. On the other hand, finite magnetic fields may provide finite exchange coupling for quantum computer operations with small errors. We critically discuss the applicability of the envelope-function approach in the current scheme, and also the merits of various quantum-chemical approaches in dealing with few-electron problems in quantum dots, such as the Hartree-Fock self-consistent-field method, the molecular-orbital method, the Heisenberg model, and the Hubbard model. We also discuss a number of relevant issues in quantum dot quantum computing in the context of our calculations, such as the required design tolerance, spin decoherence, adiabatic transitions, magnetic-field control, and error correction.