Phononic quantum networks with alternating phononic crystal waveguides have been developed. This new architecture solves the inherent scalability problem in coupling spins with mechanical vibrations by breaking large networks into small and closed mechanical subsystems.
Phononic quantum networks feature distinct advantages over photonic networks for on-chip quantum communications, providing a promising platform for developing quantum computers with robust solidstate spin qubits.Large mechanical networks including one-dimensional chains of trapped ions, however, have inherent and well-known scaling problems.In addition, chiral phononic processes, which are necessary for conventional phononic quantum networks, are difficult to implement in a solid-state system.To overcome these seemingly unsolvable obstacles, we have developed a new network architecture that breaks a large mechanical network into small and closed mechanical subsystems.This architecture is implemented in a diamond phononic nanostructure featuring alternating phononic crystal waveguides with specially designed band gaps.The implementation also includes nanomechanical resonators coupled to color centers through phonon-assisted transitions as well as quantum state transfer protocols that can be robust against the thermal environment.
Integrated photonic devices in diamond have tremendous potential for many quantum applications, including long-distance quantum communication, quantum information processing, and quantum sensing. These devices benefit from diamond's combination of exceptional thermal, optical, and mechanical properties. Its wide electronic bandgap makes diamond an ideal host for a variety of optical active spin qubits that are key building blocks for quantum technologies. In landmark experiments, diamond spin qubits have enabled demonstrations of remote entanglement, memory-enhanced quantum communication, and multi-qubit spin registers with fault-tolerant quantum error correction, leading to the realization of multinode quantum networks. These advances put diamond at the forefront of solid-state material platforms for quantum information processing. Recent developments in diamond nanofabrication techniques provide a promising route to further scaling of these landmark experiments towards real-life quantum technologies. In this paper, we focus on the recent progress in creating integrated diamond quantum photonic devices, with particular emphasis on spin-photon interfaces, cavity optomechanical devices, and spin-phonon transduction. Finally, we discuss prospects and remaining challenges for the use of diamond in scalable quantum technologies.
We present a scalable phonon-based quantum computer on a phononic crystal platform. Practical schemes involve selective placement of a single acceptor atom in the peak of the strain field in a high-Q phononic crystal cavity that enables coupling of the phonon modes to the energy levels of the atom. We show theoretical optimization of the cavity design and coupling waveguide, along with estimated performance figures of the coupled system. A qubit can be created by entangling a phonon at the resonance frequency of the cavity with the atom states. Qubits based on this half-sound, half-matter quasi-particle, called a phoniton, may outcompete other quantum architectures in terms of combined emission rate, coherence lifetime, and fabrication demands.