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arXiv:2610.13196

Graphene double quantum dot as a solid-state two-level system in the THz range

Alexis Wietzke, Solen Coeymans, Benjamin Hue, Simon Messelot, Aurelien Schmitt, Michael Rosticher, Kenji Watanabe, Takashi Taniguchi, Jerome Tignon, Sukhdeep Dhillon, Rebeca Ribeiro, Audrey Cottet, Matthieu Delbecq, Takis Kontos, Juliette Mangeney

cond-mat.mes-hallquant-phSubmitted Oct 9, 2026• Announced Oct 12, 2026
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Matter-based two-level quantum systems are fundamental building blocks of quantum technologies, underpinning applications in quantum computing, simulation, communication, and sensing. Today, most of these two-level quantum systems, including Rydberg atoms, trapped ions, superconducting circuits, molecules, and quantum dots, involve transition frequencies in microwave or optical domains. However, extending their transition frequency to the THz spectral range could provide numerous benefits, leveraging the unique properties of THz radiation. Here, we show that an hBN-encapsulated graphene double quantum dot realizes a two-level system with a transition frequency in the THz spectral range. Using low-temperature transport spectroscopy in the dark combined with modeling based on nonequilibrium Green's function formalism, we demonstrate the formation of an artificial molecule, featuring bonding and antibonding states separated by an energy of up to 0.6 meV, corresponding to a resonance frequency of 0.145 THz. This approach provides direct access to important parameters of open double quantum dot systems, including tunneling rates, offering a practical alternative to conventional techniques such as photon-assisted tunneling, which are challenging to implement at THz frequencies. The realized 2D-material-based THz two-level system, compatible with direct on-chip integration, could serve as a key building block for future THz quantum technologies. Furthermore, by involving a single-electron transition, coupling these devices to a THz resonator could enable the exploration of ultra-strong light-matter interactions at the fundamental limit of a single transition coupled to a single cavity, beyond the reach of existing THz quantum systems based on collective transitions.

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Two-dimensional (2D) materials have emerged as a versatile and powerful platform for quantum technologies, offering atomic-scale control, strong quantum confinement, and seamless integration into heterogeneous device architectures. Their reduced dimensionality enables unique quantum phenomena, including optically addressable spin defects, tunable single-photon emitters, low-dimensional magnetism, gate-controlled superconductivity, and correlated states in Moiré superlattices. This Roadmap provides a comprehensive overview of recent progress and future directions in exploiting 2D materials for quantum sensing, computation, communication, and simulation. We survey advances spanning spin defects and quantum sensing, quantum emitters and nonlinear photonics, computational theory and data-driven discovery of quantum defects, spintronic and magnonic devices, cavity-engineered quantum materials, superconducting and hybrid quantum circuits, quantum dots, Moiré quantum simulators, and quantum communication platforms. Across these themes, we identify common challenges in defect control, coherence preservation, interfacial engineering, and scalable integration, alongside emerging opportunities driven by machine$-$learning$-$assisted design and integrated experiment$-$theory feedback loops. By connecting microscopic quantum states to mesoscopic excitations and macroscopic device architectures, this Roadmap outlines a materials-centric framework for integrating coherent quantum functionalities and positions 2D materials as foundational building blocks for next-generation quantum technologies.

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Matter-based two-level quantum systems are fundamental building blocks of quantum technologies, underpinning applications in quantum computing, simulation, communication, and sensing. Today, most of these two-level quantum systems, including Rydberg atoms, trapped ions, superconducting circuits, molecules, and quantum dots, involve transition frequencies in microwave or optical domains. However, extending their transition frequency to the THz spectral range could provide numerous benefits, leveraging the unique properties of THz radiation. Here, we show that an hBN-encapsulated graphene double quantum dot realizes a two-level system with a transition frequency in the THz spectral range. Using low-temperature transport spectroscopy in the dark combined with modeling based on nonequilibrium Green's function formalism, we demonstrate the formation of an artificial molecule, featuring bonding and antibonding states separated by an energy of up to 0.6 meV, corresponding to a resonance frequency of 0.145 THz. This approach provides direct access to important parameters of open double quantum dot systems, including tunneling rates, offering a practical alternative to conventional techniques such as photon-assisted tunneling, which are challenging to implement at THz frequencies. The realized 2D-material-based THz two-level system, compatible with direct on-chip integration, could serve as a key building block for future THz quantum technologies. Furthermore, by involving a single-electron transition, coupling these devices to a THz resonator could enable the exploration of ultra-strong light-matter interactions at the fundamental limit of a single transition coupled to a single cavity, beyond the reach of existing THz quantum systems based on collective transitions.
Over the past few decades, THz technology has made considerable progress, evidenced by the performance of current THz sources and detectors, as well as the emergence of several THz applications. However, in the realm of quantum technologies, the THz spectral domain is still in its infancy, unlike neighboring spectral domains that have flourished in recent years. Notably, in the microwave domain, superconducting qubits currently serve as the core of quantum computers, while quantum cryptography protocols have been successfully demonstrated in the visible and telecommunications domains through satellite links. The THz domain has lagged behind in these impressive advancements. Today, the current gap in the THz domain clearly concerns quantum technologies. Nonetheless, the emergence of quantum technologies operating at THz frequencies will potentially have a significant impact. Indeed, THz radiation holds significant promise for wireless communications with ultimate security owing to its low sensitivity to atmospheric disturbances. Moreover, it has the potential to raise the operating temperature of solid-state qubits, effectively addressing existing scalability issues. In addition, THz radiation can manipulate the quantum states of molecules, which are recognized as new platforms for quantum computation and simulation with long range interactions. Finally, its ability to penetrate generally opaque materials or its resistance to Rayleigh scattering are very appealing features for quantum sensing. In this perspective, we will discuss potential approaches that offer exciting prospects for generating and detecting non-classical states of THz light, thereby opening doors to significant breakthroughs in THz quantum technologies.
Benefit from the recent nanotechnology process, people can integrate different nanostructures on a single chip. Particularly, quantum dots (QD), which behave as artificial atoms, have been shown to couple with a superconducting resonator, indicating that quantum-dot based quantum chip has a highly scalable possibility. Here we show a quantum chip architecture by combining graphene quantum dots and superconducting resonators together. A double quantum dot (DQD) and a microwave hybrid system can be described by the Jaynes-Cummings model, while a multi-quantum-dots system is conformed to the Tavis-Cummings model. These simple quantum optics models are experimentally realized in our device, providing a compelling platform for both graphene study and potential applications.
We have realized a hybrid solid-state quantum device in which a single-electron semiconductor double quantum dot is dipole coupled to a superconducting microwave frequency transmission line resonator. The dipolar interaction between the two entities manifests itself via dispersive and dissipative effects observed as frequency shifts and linewidth broadenings of the photonic mode respectively. A Jaynes-Cummings Hamiltonian master equation calculation is used to model the combined system response and allows for determining both the coherence properties of the double quantum dot and its interdot tunnel coupling with high accuracy. The value and uncertainty of the tunnel coupling extracted from the microwave read-out technique are compared to a standard quantum point contact charge detection analysis. The two techniques are found to be consistent with a superior precision for the microwave experiment when tunneling rates approach the resonator eigenfrequency. Decoherence properties of the double dot are further investigated as a function of the number of electrons inside the dots. They are found to be similar in the single-electron and many-electron regimes suggesting that the density of the confinement energy spectrum plays a minor role in the decoherence rate of the system under investigation.
Graphene Josephson junctions (JJ) provide a promising platform for ultra-broadband quantum sensing of light owing to graphene's frequency-independent absorption, vanishing electronic heat capacity, and weak electron-phonon coupling, which enable rapid suppression of the critical current through radiation-induced electron heating. Existing investigations have been confined to the microwave and infrared regimes, where competing detector technologies are already established; by contrast, the terahertz (THz) band - where sensitivity is most urgently lacking and no mature quantum sensor exists - has remained largerly unexplored. Here we demonstrate a strong photoresponse of graphene JJs at THz frequencies, establishing a first experimental step towards graphene-based THz quantum sensors. Under low-intensity illumination, we observe a pronounced suppression of the critical current that generates a strong photovoltage (Vph) under current bias. By tracking this Vph and independently measuring the electron temperature as a function of absorbed power, we extract a responsivity of 88 kV W^-1 and a noise-equivalent power of 45 aW Hz^-1/2 at 1.7 K. Furthermore, gate tunability of our JJ enables access to a regime where hysteretic current-voltage characteristics persist up to 0.9 K, offering a potential route toward single-photon THz detection beyond millikelvin (mK) temperatures. These findings establish graphene JJ as a versatile platform for broadband cryogenic radiation sensing and point towards their use as quantum sensors at THz frequencies.
Bilayer graphene is a maturing material platform for gate-defined quantum dots that hosts long-lived spin and valley states. Implementing solid-state qubits in bilayer graphene requires a fundamental understanding of such confined electronic systems. In particular, states of two and three carriers, for which the exchange interaction between particles plays a crucial role, are a cornerstone for qubit readout and manipulation. Here we report on the spectroscopy of few-carrier states in bilayer graphene quantum dots, using circuit quantum electrodynamics (cQED) techniques that offer substantially improved energy resolution compared to standard transport techniques. Measurements using a superconducting high-impedance resonator capacitively coupled to the double quantum dot reveal dispersive features of two and three electron states, enabling the detection of Pauli spin and valley blockade and the characterization of the spin-orbit gap at zero magnetic field. The results deepen our understanding of few-carrier spin and valley states in bilayer graphene quantum dots and demonstrate that cQED techniques are a powerful state-selective probe for semiconductor nanostructures.
Two-dimensional (2D) materials have emerged as a versatile and powerful platform for quantum technologies, offering atomic-scale control, strong quantum confinement, and seamless integration into heterogeneous device architectures. Their reduced dimensionality enables unique quantum phenomena, including optically addressable spin defects, tunable single-photon emitters, low-dimensional magnetism, gate-controlled superconductivity, and correlated states in Moiré superlattices. This Roadmap provides a comprehensive overview of recent progress and future directions in exploiting 2D materials for quantum sensing, computation, communication, and simulation. We survey advances spanning spin defects and quantum sensing, quantum emitters and nonlinear photonics, computational theory and data-driven discovery of quantum defects, spintronic and magnonic devices, cavity-engineered quantum materials, superconducting and hybrid quantum circuits, quantum dots, Moiré quantum simulators, and quantum communication platforms. Across these themes, we identify common challenges in defect control, coherence preservation, interfacial engineering, and scalable integration, alongside emerging opportunities driven by machine−-−learning−-−assisted design and integrated experiment−-−theory feedback loops. By connecting microscopic quantum states to mesoscopic excitations and macroscopic device architectures, this Roadmap outlines a materials-centric framework for integrating coherent quantum functionalities and positions 2D materials as foundational building blocks for next-generation quantum technologies.