The possibility to designing schemes useful for developing quantum technology devices of practical value necessitates exploiting quantum coherence effects in a scalable physical system in a feasible way. The broad aim of this thesis is to investigate the use of quantum non-equilibrium dynamics for the above, exploiting minimal control to accomplish highly coherent dynamics in a many-body system. How to harness the natural hopping dynamics of particles in a many-site lattice for controlled applications, is still an open question. Through the introduction of few impurities in the lattice potential, we devise a scheme to trigger effective tunable linear optics-like operations between arbitrary sites, that overcomes the limitations of setups based on coherent hopping dynamics, when particles are initially separated by many sites. Our scheme enables the generation of peculiar quantum interference effects as well as quantum metrology applications in a many-site lattice. We design a lattice coupling profile that enables perfect wave-packet splitting between mirror symmetric sites and leads to perfect wave-packet reconstruction, fractional revivals and perfect entanglement distribution, for arbitrary long chains. We prove that composite objects in a lattice, made of more particles initially in a lattice site, are a valuable resource for dynamically generating non-classical states between remote sites, tackling edge-localisation effects via local fields. Finally, we show how the spin independent scattering of two initially distant qubits, can be used to implement an entangling quantum gate between remote sites of a lattice. Our findings have potentially an impact on quantum information, as well as on atomic interferometry in a lattice.
The possibility to designing schemes useful for developing quantum technology devices of practical value necessitates exploiting quantum coherence effects in a scalable physical system in a feasible way. The broad aim of this thesis is to investigate the use of quantum non-equilibrium dynamics for the above, exploiting minimal control to accomplish highly coherent dynamics in a many-body system. How to harness the natural hopping dynamics of particles in a many-site lattice for controlled applications, is still an open question. Through the introduction of few impurities in the lattice potential, we devise a scheme to trigger effective tunable linear optics-like operations between arbitrary sites, that overcomes the limitations of setups based on coherent hopping dynamics, when particles are initially separated by many sites. Our scheme enables the generation of peculiar quantum interference effects as well as quantum metrology applications in a many-site lattice. We design a lattice coupling profile that enables perfect wave-packet splitting between mirror symmetric sites and leads to perfect wave-packet reconstruction, fractional revivals and perfect entanglement distribution, for arbitrary long chains. We prove that composite objects in a lattice, made of more particles initially in a lattice site, are a valuable resource for dynamically generating non-classical states between remote sites, tackling edge-localisation effects via local fields. Finally, we show how the spin independent scattering of two initially distant qubits, can be used to implement an entangling quantum gate between remote sites of a lattice. Our findings have potentially an impact on quantum information, as well as on atomic interferometry in a lattice.
This thesis describes research on controlling the dynamics of quasiparticles in periodic and disordered lattice potentials. Working with model systems of arrays of atoms and molecules trapped in optical lattices, I focus on, but not limited to, the rotational excitons of polar molecules and propose to use external fields to control the binding and propagation of quasiparticles. First, we study the binding of rotational excitons in a periodic potential. We show that non-linear interactions of such excitons can be controlled by an electric field. The exciton-exciton interactions can be tuned to induce exciton pairing, leading to the formation of biexcitons and three-body bound states of excitons. In addition, we propose a non-optical way to create biexcitons by splitting a high-energy exciton into two low-energy excitons. Second, we present schemes to control the propagation of a collective excited state in ordered and disordered aggregates of coupled particles. We demonstrate that the dynamics of these excitations can be controlled by applying a transient external potential which modifies the phase of the quantum states of the individual particles. The method is based on an interplay of adiabatic and sudden time scales in the quantum evolution of the many-body states. We show that specific phase transformations can be used to accelerate or decelerate quantum energy transfer and spatially focus delocalized excitations onto different parts of arrays of quantum particles. For the model systems of atoms and molecules trapped in an optical lattice, we consider possible experimental implementations of the proposed technique and study the effect of disorder, due to the presence of impurities, on its fidelity. We further show that the proposed technique can allow control of energy transfer in completely disordered systems. Finally, in an effort to refine the theoretical tools to study dynamics of quasiparticles, I extend calculations of lattice Green's functions to disordered systems. We develop a generic algorithm that can be easily adapted to systems with long-range interactions and high dimensionalities. As an application of the method, we propose to use the Green's function to study the tunneling of biexciton states through impurities.
This thesis reports on new experimental techniques for the study of strongly correlated states of ultracold atoms in optical lattices. We used a high numerical aperture imaging system to probe 87Rb atoms in a two-dimensional lattice with single-site resolution. Fluorescence imaging allows to detect single atoms with a large signal to noise ratio and to reconstruct the atom distribution on the lattice. We applied this new technique to a two-dimensional Mott insulator and directly observed number squeezing and the emerging shell structure. A comparison of the radial density and variance distributions to theory provides a precise in situ temperature and entropy measurement from single images. We find entropies around the critical value for quantum magnetism. In a second series of experiments, we demonstrated two-dimensional single-site spin control in the optical lattice. The differential light shift of a tightly focused laser beam shifts selected atoms into resonance with a microwave field driving a spin flip. In this way, we reach sub-diffraction limited spatial resolution well below the lattice spacing. Starting from a Mott insulator with unity filling we were able to create arbitrary spin patterns. We used this ability to prepare atom distributions to study one-dimensional single-particle tunneling dynamics in a lattice. By discriminating the dynamics of the ground state and of the first excited band, we find that our addressing scheme leaves most atoms in the vibrational ground state. Moreover, we studied coherent light scattering from the atoms in the optical lattice and found diffraction maxima in the far-field. We showed that an antiferromagnetic order leads to additional diffraction peaks which can be used to detect this order also when single-site resolution is not available. The new techniques described in this thesis open the path to a wide range of novel applications from quantum dynamics of spin impurities, entropy transport, implementation of novel cooling schemes, and engineering of quantum many-body phases to quantum information processing.
Experiments with ultracold atoms in optical lattices provide outstanding opportunities to realize exotic quantum states due to a high degree of tunability and control. In this thesis, I present experiments that extend this control from global parameters to the level of individual particles. \n\nUsing a quantum gas microscope for 87Rb, we have developed a single-site addressing scheme based on digital amplitude holograms. The system self-corrects for aberrations in the imaging setup and creates arbitrary beam profiles. We are thus able to shape optical potentials on the scale of single lattice sites and control the dynamics of individual atoms. \n\nWe study the role of quantum statistics and interactions in the Bose-Hubbard model on the fundamental level of two particles. Bosonic quantum statistics are apparent in the Hong-Ou-Mandel interference of massive particles, which we observe in tailored double-well potentials. These underlying statistics, in combination with tunable repulsive interactions, dominate the dynamics in single- and two-particle quantum walks. We observe highly coherent position-space Bloch oscillations, bosonic bunching in Hanbury Brown-Twiss interference and the fermionization of strongly interacting bosons.\n\nMany-body states of indistinguishable quantum particles are characterized by large-scale spatial entanglement, which is difficult to detect in itinerant systems. Here, we extend the concept of Hong-Ou-Mandel interference from individual particles to many-body states to directly quantify entanglement entropy. We perform collective measurements on two copies of a quantum state and detect entanglement entropy through many-body interference. We measure the second order Rényi entropy in small Bose-Hubbard systems and detect the buildup of spatial entanglement across the superfluid-insulator transition.\n\nOur experiments open new opportunities for the single-particle-resolved preparation and characterization of many-body quantum states.
Ultracold quantum gases in optical lattices provide a rich experimental toolbox for simulating the physics of condensed matter systems. With atoms in the lattice playing the role of electrons or Cooper pairs in real materials, it is possible to experimentally realize condensed matter Hamiltonians in a controlled way. To realize the full potential of such quantum simulations, we leverage a quantum gas microscope which can spatially resolve the atoms in the optical lattice at the single site level and project arbitrary potential landscapes onto the atoms by combining the high resolution optics with static holographic masks or a spatial light modulator. The versatility of this system allows for a wide range of studies. In this thesis, we focus on three experiments that highlight the utility of a tunable platform and demonstrate the richness of physics that comes with interactions.\nIn the first, we observe on-site interparticle interactions introduce a non-linearity into the many-body energy spectrum of a harmonic oscillator. The excitation of a single atom into a higher band induces an energy shift in the excitation energy for the second atom, blockading the orbital excitation. We demonstrate a technique for deterministic number filtering based upon orbital excitation blockade. When applied to a high temperature Mott insulator, this number filtering realizes a form of algorithmic cooling, which can be used for initializing a large quantum register or creating low entropy initial states for many-body simulation.\nIn the second, we study the applicability of statistical physics in an isolated system governed by quantum mechanics. While the descriptive power of these two fields has been confirmed through repeated and varied empirical studies, their underlying axioms of entropy maximization and unitary evolution appear mutually exclusive. With our quantum gas microscope, we have the ability to probe local observables such as the on-site number statistics as well as measure the quantum mechanical purity through interference operations. With these capabilities, we are able to observe the local thermalization of a manifestly quantum mechanically pure many-body system.\nIn the last chapter, we report on the first cold atoms studies of an interacting system under an artificial gauge field. We consider the propagation of a pair of atoms in a 2timesN ladder governed by the Harper-Hofstadter model. The eigenstates of this system include both scattering states, which can exhibit chiral propagation, and bound states. A superexchange energy shift in our initial state leads to imbalanced population in the two chiral scattering sectors, leading to chiral propagation dynamics. This effect is the result of both the presence of interactions and the artificial gauge fields. These two components are essential ingredients for fractional quantum Hall physics. Moreover, the dynamic tunable gauge field we develop and the control afforded by a quantum gas microscope make this platform well-suited for future studies in this regime.
This thesis is concerned with the collective dynamics in different spin chains and spin ensembles in solid-state materials. The focus is on the manipulation of electron spins, through spin-spin and spin-photon couplings controlled by voltage potentials or electromagnetic fields. A brief review of various systems is provided to describe the possible physical implementation of the ideas, and also outlines the basis of the adopted effective interaction models. The first two ideas presented explore the collective behaviour of non-interacting spin chains with external couplings. One focuses on mapping the identical state of spin-singlet pairs in two currents onto two distant, static spins downstream, creating distributed entanglement that may be accessed. The other studies a quantum memory consisting of an array of non-interacting, static spins, which may encode and decode multiple flying spins. Both chains could effectively 'enhance' weak couplings in a cumulative fashion, and neither scheme requires active quantum control. Moreover, the distributed entanglement generated can offer larger separation between the qubits than more conventional protocols that only exploit the tunnelling effects between quantum dots. The quantum memory can also 'smooth' the statistical fluctuations in the effects of local errors when the stored information is spread. Next, an interacting chain of static spins with nearest-neighbour interactions is introduced to connect distant end spins. Previously, it has been shown that this approach provides a cubic speed-up when compared with the direct coupling between the target spins. The practicality of this scheme is investigated by analysing realistic error effects via numerical simulations, and from that perspective relaxation of the nearest-neighbour assumption is proposed. Finally, a non-interacting electron spin ensemble is reviewed as a quantum memory to store single photons from an on-chip stripline cavity. It is then promoted to a full quantum processor, with major error effects analysed.
This Thesis contributes to the theory of entanglement distribution in quantum networks, analyzing the generation of long-distance entanglement in particular.We consider that neighboring stations share one partially entangled pair of qubits, which emphasizes the difficulty of creating remote entanglement in realistic settings.The task is then to design local quantum operations at the stations, such that the entanglement present in the links of the whole network gets concentrated between few parties only, regardless of their spatial arrangement.First, we study quantum networks with a two-dimensional lattice structure, where quantum connections between the stations (nodes) are described by non-maximally entangled pure states (links).We show that the generation of a perfectly entangled pair of qubits over an arbitrarily long distance is possible if the initial entanglement of the links is larger than a threshold.This critical value highly depends on the geometry of the lattice, in particular on the connectivity of the nodes, and is related to a classical percolation problem.We then develop a genuine quantum strategy based on multipartite entanglement, improving both the threshold and the success probability of the generation of long-distance entanglement.Second, we consider a mixed-state definition of the connections of the quantum networks.This formalism is well-adapted for a more realistic description of systems in which noise (random errors) inevitably occurs.New techniques are required to create remote entanglement in this setting, and we show how to locally extract and globally process some error syndromes in order to create useful long-distance quantum correlations.Finally, we turn to networks that have a complex topology, which is the case for most real-world communication networks such as the Internet for instance.Besides many other characteristics, these systems have in common the small-world feature, stating that any two nodes are separated by a few links only.Based on the theory of random graphs, we propose a model of quantum complex networks, which exhibit some totally unexpected properties compared to their classical counterparts.5.1 Propagation of a large GHZ state through the lattice . . .5.2 Bit-flip error correction . . . . . . . . . . . . .