Direct detection of dark matter remains an important outstanding problem since abundant astrophysical evidence points towards its existence, but no experiment has succeeded in detecting it. Axions and axion-like-particles are some of the most compelling candidates for dark matter given their appearance in many theories of physics beyond the Standard Model and their relatively unexplored parameter space compared to other candidates. Recently, the Cosmic Axion Spin Precession Experiment-Electric (CASPEr-e) has used nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to search for effective magnetic fields created by axionic dark matter. By decreasing technical noise sources, CASPEr-e is projected to reach the standard quantum limit where spin projection noise is the dominant noise source limiting sensitivity. However, some axion models predict axion couplings to normal matter that would be too small for even a quantum limited CASPEr-e experiment to detect. This creates a need for surpassing the spin projection noise limit in NMR dark matter searches. In this thesis, I explore the prospects for surpassing the quantum limit in NMR by using spin squeezed states, entangled states with variance in one projection reduced below the standard quantum limit. First, I propose an experimental scheme for generating squeezed states by coupling the spins to an off-resonant circuit to create a One-Axis-Twist Hamiltonian. Then, using exact results and numerical simulations, I determine the amount of squeezing that can be achieved given decoherence and noise. Next, I perform modeling to show that squeezing can accelerate dark matter searches despite earlier results that argued squeezing cannot improve experimental sensitivity when subject to decoherence. Finally, I apply these results to the CASPEr-e experiment and show that at axion frequencies near 100MHz, squeezing can speed up the experiment by a factor of up to 30, corresponding to a sensitivity improvement by a factor of over 5.Direct detection of dark matter remains an important outstanding problem since abundant astrophysical evidence points towards its existence, but no experiment has succeeded in detecting it. Axions and axion-like-particles are some of the most compelling candidates for dark matter given their appearance in many theories of physics beyond the Standard Model and their relatively unexplored parameter space compared to other candidates. Recently, the Cosmic Axion Spin Precession Experiment-Electric (CASPEr-e) has used nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to search for effective magnetic fields created by axionic dark matter. By decreasing technical noise sources, CASPEr-e is projected to reach the standard quantum limit where spin projection noise is the dominant noise source limiting sensitivity. However, some axion models predict axion couplings to normal matter that would be too small for even a quantum limited CASPEr-e experiment to detect. This creates a need for surpassing the spin projection noise limit in NMR dark matter searches. In this thesis, I explore the prospects for surpassing the quantum limit in NMR by using spin squeezed states, entangled states with variance in one projection reduced below the standard quantum limit. First, I propose an experimental scheme for generating squeezed states by coupling the spins to an off-resonant circuit to create a One-Axis-Twist Hamiltonian. Then, using exact results and numerical simulations, I determine the amount of squeezing that can be achieved given decoherence and noise. Next, I perform modeling to show that squeezing can accelerate dark matter searches despite earlier results that argued squeezing cannot improve experimental sensitivity when subject to decoherence. Finally, I apply these results to the CASPEr-e experiment and show that at axion frequencies near 100MHz, squeezing can speed up the experiment by a factor of up to 30, corresponding to a sensitivity improvement by a factor of over 5.

Jan 1, 20220 citations

Spin Squeezing in a Quadrupolar Nuclei NMR System

R. Auccaise, A. G. Araujo-Ferreira, Roberto S. Sarthour +3 more

We have produced and characterized spin-squeezed states at a temperature of 26 °C in a nuclear magnetic resonance quadrupolar system. The experiment was carried out on 133Cs nuclei of spin I=7/2 in a sample of lyotropic liquid crystal. The source of spin squeezing was identified as the interaction between the quadrupole moment of the nuclei and the electric field gradients present within the molecules. We use the spin angular momentum representation to describe formally the nonlinear operators that produce the spin squeezing on a Hilbert space of dimension 2I+1=8. The quantitative and qualitative characterization of this spin-squeezing phenomenon is expressed by a squeezing parameter and squeezing angle developed for the two-mode Bose-Einstein condensate system, as well as by the Wigner quasiprobability distribution function. The generality of the present experimental scheme points to potential applications in solid-state physics.We have produced and characterized spin-squeezed states at a temperature of 26 °C in a nuclear magnetic resonance quadrupolar system. The experiment was carried out on 133Cs nuclei of spin I=7/2 in a sample of lyotropic liquid crystal. The source of spin squeezing was identified as the interaction between the quadrupole moment of the nuclei and the electric field gradients present within the molecules. We use the spin angular momentum representation to describe formally the nonlinear operators that produce the spin squeezing on a Hilbert space of dimension 2I+1=8. The quantitative and qualitative characterization of this spin-squeezing phenomenon is expressed by a squeezing parameter and squeezing angle developed for the two-mode Bose-Einstein condensate system, as well as by the Wigner quasiprobability distribution function. The generality of the present experimental scheme points to potential applications in solid-state physics.

arXiv:1403.2706Physical Review LettersJan 29, 201563 citations

New Frontiers in Spin Squeezing

Kevin C. Cox, Joshua M. Weiner, Graham P. Greve +1 more

Bulletin of the American Physical SocietyJun 11, 20150 citations

Quantum spin squeezing

Jian Ma, Xiaoguang Wang, C. P. Sun +1 more

arXiv:1011.2978Physics ReportsSep 1, 2011846 citations

Spin squeezing via one-axis twisting in a quadrupolar NMR system under relaxation effects

Adriane Consuelo Leal Auccaise, Antonio S. M. de Castro

This study investigates spin squeezed states in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) quadrupolar systems with spins $I=3/2$ and $I=7/2$ at room temperature, taking into account the effects of relaxation on the dynamics. The origin of spin squeezing is attributed to the interaction between the nuclear quadrupole moment and the electric field gradients in the molecular environment. The formal description of the nonlinear operators responsible for spin squeezing is achieved using the spin angular momentum representation via the one-axis twisting mechanism. This approach provides a framework for quantum control and metrology over the spin squeezing process while accounting for the influence of relaxation phenomena. Non-Cartesian angular momentum operators are proposed, with their variances products catching the quantum effects during the dynamics. An upper bound for the squeezing parameter and the Heisenberg uncertainty at thermal equilibrium are also predicted for any spin quantum number.This study investigates spin squeezed states in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) quadrupolar systems with spins $I=3/2$ and $I=7/2$ at room temperature, taking into account the effects of relaxation on the dynamics. The origin of spin squeezing is attributed to the interaction between the nuclear quadrupole moment and the electric field gradients in the molecular environment. The formal description of the nonlinear operators responsible for spin squeezing is achieved using the spin angular momentum representation via the one-axis twisting mechanism. This approach provides a framework for quantum control and metrology over the spin squeezing process while accounting for the influence of relaxation phenomena. Non-Cartesian angular momentum operators are proposed, with their variances products catching the quantum effects during the dynamics. An upper bound for the squeezing parameter and the Heisenberg uncertainty at thermal equilibrium are also predicted for any spin quantum number.

arXiv:2504.06204Physical Review AAug 29, 20253 citations

This study investigates spin squeezed states in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) quadrupolar systems with spins

I=3/2

and

I=7/2

at room temperature, taking into account the effects of relaxation on the dynamics. The origin of spin squeezing is attributed to the interaction between the nuclear quadrupole moment and the electric field gradients in the molecular environment. The formal description of the nonlinear operators responsible for spin squeezing is achieved using the spin angular momentum representation via the one-axis twisting mechanism. This approach provides a framework for quantum control and metrology over the spin squeezing process while accounting for the influence of relaxation phenomena. Non-Cartesian angular momentum operators are proposed, with their variances products catching the quantum effects during the dynamics. An upper bound for the squeezing parameter and the Heisenberg uncertainty at thermal equilibrium are also predicted for any spin quantum number.