Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics Europe & European Quantum Electronics Conference (CLEO/Europe-EQEC)
Two-Electron Quantum Walks Probe Entanglement and Decoherence in an Ultrafast Electron Microscope
Offek Tziperman, D. Nabben, Ron Ruimy, Yiqi Fang, Ethan Nussinson, Jacob Holder, Alexey A. Gorlach, Daniel Kazenwadel, Aviv Karnieli, Ido E. Kaminer, Peter Baum
According to the laws of quantum mechanics, an ensemble of many interacting particles evolves coherently, and the corresponding unitary evolution delocalizes the wavefunction of each particle while also entangling it with many other ones. However, in practice, only a subset of the particles is observed, while the rest is considered as the environment [1]. In such a scenario, decoherence theory predicts the appearance of classical properties. We experimentally examine such phenomena using multiple free electrons, which are elementary particles with a well-defined classical limit: point particles following Newton's laws. Electrons strongly interact by Coulomb forces and exhibit measurable classical [2] or quantum-mechanical [3] behaviors under different types of measurement. For example, electron pairs have strong classical anti-correlations in energy and time [4]–[6]. However, the quantum properties of multiple electrons and their degree of entanglement remain unexplored, despite theoretical studies indicating such possibilities [7].
According to the laws of quantum mechanics, an ensemble of many interacting particles evolves coherently, and the corresponding unitary evolution delocalizes the wavefunction of each particle while also entangling it with many other ones. However, in practice, only a subset of the particles is observed, while the rest is considered as the environment [1]. In such a scenario, decoherence theory predicts the appearance of classical properties. We experimentally examine such phenomena using multiple free electrons, which are elementary particles with a well-defined classical limit: point particles following Newton's laws. Electrons strongly interact by Coulomb forces and exhibit measurable classical [2] or quantum-mechanical [3] behaviors under different types of measurement. For example, electron pairs have strong classical anti-correlations in energy and time [4]–[6]. However, the quantum properties of multiple electrons and their degree of entanglement remain unexplored, despite theoretical studies indicating such possibilities [7].
Quantum theory is often cited as being one of the most empirically validated theories in terms of its predictive power and precision. These attributes have led to numerous scientific discoveries and technological advancements. However, the precise relationship between quantum and classical physics remains obscure. The prevailing description is known as decoherence theory, where classical physics emerges from a more general quantum theory through environmental interaction. Sometimes referred to as the decoherence program, it does not solve the quantum measurement problem. We believe experiments performed between the microscopic and macroscopic world may help finish the program. The following considers a free electron that interacts with a surface (the environment), providing a controlled decoherence mechanism. There are non-decohering interactions to be examined and quantified before the weaker decohering effects are filtered out. In the first experiment, an electron beam passes over a surface that’s illuminated by low-power laser light. This induces a surface charge redistribution causing the electron deflection. This phenomenon’s parameters are investigated. This system can be well understood in terms of classical electrodynamics, A second experiment tests decoherence theory by introducing a nanofabricated diffraction grating before the surface. The electron undergoes diffraction through the grating, but as the electron passes over the surface it’s predicted by various physical models that the electron will lose its wave interference property. Image charge based models, which predict a larger loss of contrast than what is observed, are falsified (despite experiencing an image charge force). A theoretical study demonstrates how a loss of contrast may not be due to the irreversible process decoherence, but dephasing (a reversible process due to randomization of the wavefunction’s phase). To resolve this ambiguity, a correlation function on an ensemble of diffraction patterns is analyzed after an electron undergoes either process in a path integral calculation. The diffraction pattern is successfully recovered for dephasing, but not for decoherence, thus verifying it as a potential tool in experimental studies to determine the nature of the observed process.
Electron beams are a formidable tool for probing nanophotonic systems [1]. Combining electron microscopy with external optical excitation in ultrafast transmission electron microscopes has enabled the mapping of optical near-fields [2] and the bunching of electrons in attosecond pulses [3, 4]. These developments are based on the stimulated inelastic scattering between electrons and light [5, 6], in which the electrons gain energy from or lose energy to the optical field. Recently, the underlying interaction strength of this process has been increased significantly by harnessing resonant enhancement of the optical field and velocity phase matching [7]. Such an increased interaction strength also benefits the spontaneous scattering of electrons with light, thus promising applications like generating complex quantum states of light [8]. In this presentation, we discuss a set of experiments on free electron quantum optics that investigate single-electron-single-photon interactions and probe the resulting entanglement. Specifically, we consider scenarios in which optical waveguide structures are placed inside a transmission electron microscope (TEM) facilitating the interaction. Electrons passing by, for example, an integrated photonic structure (cf. Fig. 1a) can inelastically scatter with the optical mode, leading to the emergence of electron-photon pair states [9]. The resulting correlation between energy-loss electrons and photons, illustrated in Fig. 1b, can be probed employing time- and energy-resolved detection of both particles, revealing a pronounced coincidence peak between their arrival times, schematically shown in Fig. 1c. Extending the photon detection setup by a second detector to allow for Hanbury Brown and Twiss (HBT) measurements, the photon statistics heralded by such energy-loss electrons can be studied [10]. The observed anti-bunching behavior indicates a nonclassical optical state with single-photon properties. The inelastic electron-light scattering underlying the electron-photon pair generation is further expected to induce entanglement in the particle energies [11], however, direct observation of quantum entanglement would be exceedingly difficult given the large number of independent quantum states available in these degrees of freedom. Therefore, we propose experiments based on the quantum eraser scheme to demonstrate this free-electron-photon entanglement in different degrees of freedom [12,13]. Specifically, we consider a double-slit geometry coherently illuminated by an electron beam such that an interference pattern can be observed on a distant screen (cf. Fig. 2a). If electrons passing through the left or right (denoted |Land |R, respectively) slit generate distinct marker photons with vertical (|V)or horizontal (|H) polarization, this interference pattern would disappear due to the entanglement of electron path and photon polarisation (cf. Fig. 2b). However, if this which-path information carried by the marker photon is erased, e.g. by mixing the polarisation states, the interference pattern can be recovered when detecting electrons and photons in coincidence. We describe an extension of this idea to an entanglement test, before discussing possible realistic implementations and presenting preliminary results on several experimental key aspects. In summary, we discuss the inelastic electron-light scattering at integrated photonic structures with applications ranging from coherent electron beam modulation using continuous-wave optical fields to the electron-driven generation of quantum optical states of light. Delving deeper into single electron-single photon interactions, we outline feasible experiments to generate and verify electron-photon entanglement with a potential extension to electron pairs based on entanglement swapping. All this adds to the toolbox of free electron quantum optics, potentially enabling novel sources of quantum light as well as quantum-enhanced sensing in electron microscopy. Generation of correlated electron-photon pairs. (a) Electrons pass over a photonic integrated circuit placed in the sample plane of a TEM, generating photons in the optical waveguides via inelastic scattering. Energy-loss electrons are detected and time-tagged behind an imaging spectrometer in coincidence with photons exiting the waveguide. (b) Inelastic scattering links the electron energy loss (green, right ladder) to the generation of photons (red, left ladder), creating correlations in energy and time. (c) A strong temporal correlation between the loss electrons and detected photons, indicated by the red dot, is observed relative to the uncorrelated zero-loss background electrons (blue line). Free-electron-photon quantum eraser. (a) Coherent electron illumination of a double-slit structure results in interference between the two pathways |Land |R.(b) If the electrons generate distinguishable marker photons, e.g. of orthogonal polarizations |Vand |H, no interference pattern can be observed due to the electron-photon entanglement. (c) Collecting these marker photons and erasing the which-path information, e.g. using a half-wave plate (λ/2), the electron interference can be recovered using electron-photon coincidence detection with single-photon detectors (SPDs) placed behind a polarizing beam splitter (PBS).
Free electrons provide a powerful tool for probing material properties at atomic resolution. Recent advances in ultrafast electron microscopy enable the manipulation of free-electron wave functions using laser pulses. It would be of great importance if one could combine the spatial resolution of electron microscopes with the ability of laser pulses to probe coherent phenomena in quantum systems. To this end, we propose a novel concept that leverages free electrons that are coherently shaped by laser pulses to measure quantum coherence in materials. We develop the quantum theory of interactions between shaped electrons and arbitrary qubit states in materials, and show how the postinteraction electron energy spectrum enables measuring the qubit state (on the Bloch sphere) and the decoherence or relaxation times (T_{2}/T_{1}). Finally, we describe how such electrons can detect and quantify superradiance from multiple qubits. Our scheme can be implemented in ultrafast transmission electron microscopes (UTEM), opening the way toward the full characterization of the state of quantum systems at atomic resolution.
The interaction of electrons and photons lies at the heart of quantum physics. The \nmost notable phenomena which are described by quantum physics but which obviously \ninvalidate a classical description of the electromagnetic field - the photoelectric \neffect, the Compton effect, or the antibunching of photons emitted from a single atom, \nto mention a few - are intimately related to the interaction of electrons and photons. \nElectrons possess an internal degree of freedom, the spin. The spin S of an electron \ncan be described as an internal angular momentum, leading to a magnetic moment \nm due to the electric charge of the electron. Stern and Gerlach have shown that \nthe projection of m onto a quantization axis (defined by an external magnetic field \nin their experiment), e.g., along the z axis, is either mz = g�μB/2 (\\spin up") or \nmz = g�μB=2 (\\spin down"), where �μB � 9:2741 � 10-24 J/T is the Bohr magneton \nand g is the g-factor of the electron (g = 2 for free electrons). \n \n An electron spin \nis therefore usually referred to as a two-level system. Due to this property, the \nspin of electrons which are localized in semiconductor quantum dots has recently \nattracted significant attention regarding the implementation of quantum information \nprocessing: Electron spins can be used as carriers of quantum information. One \ncan define that the spin pointing "up" corresponds to the logical value "0" and \nthe spin pointing "down" corresponds to "1". Moreover, because the electron spin \nis a quantum mechanical property one can form arbitrary coherent superpositions of \n"up" and "down" with a single spin. Moreover, because the electron spin \nis a quantum mechanical property one can form arbitrary coherent superpositions of \n"up" and "down" with a single spin. A system with this property is called a quantum \nbit (qubit). The additional possibilities due to quantum superpositions of qubits are \nexploited, e.g., in the algorithms introduced by Shor and Grover to solve certain tasks \nmuch more efficiently than with a classical computer (i.e., the prime factorization of \nlarge numbers for Shor's algorithm and the search within an unstructured database for \nGrover's algorithm). While quantum computation has presently only been achieved \nin prototypical experiments with few qubits, the implementation of efficient largescale \nquantum computation with many qubits still remains an extremely demanding \ntask. Yet, other quantum mechanical properties of qubits, such as entanglement, \nhave already been exploited experimentally with photons in quantum communication \nschemes, for example, quantum teleportation and quantum data compression. \nIn this thesis, we investigate the interaction of electrons and photons in semiconductor \nquantum dots. Optical transitions in quantum dots enable a direct link between \nelectron spins and photon polarizations due to conservation laws. We show that \n \nentanglement can be transferred from electron spin qubits to qubits defined by the \nphoton polarization, enabling the measurement of entangled spin states via photons. \nThe mechanism under study can also be used for the production of entangled photons, \nfor instance for the implementation of quantum communication protocols. In contrast \nto the presently used sources of entangled photons, the photon source we propose here \nis deterministic, providing entangled photons on demand. It has been demonstrated \nin several recent experiments that the most obvious way to achieve such a transfer of \nentanglement - using the recombination of biexcitons in a single quantum dot - fails \nin the presently available quantum dot structures. We have analyzed the problems \nof this approach. As a solution, we propose schemes based on charged excitons in \nsingle or coupled quantum dots. We discuss the generation of entangled two- and \nfour-photon states. \nIn addition to the transfer of quantum states, photons can also be used to probe \nelectron spin states. We investigate in detail different methods to optically measure \nthe decoherence time of a single electron spin in a quantum dot. The decoherence time \nof a spin establishes the time scale during which coherent manipulation is possible. \nMeasurements of the electron spin decoherence time are therefore highly desirable \nin view of the implementation of spin-based quantum information processing. We \nshow that the schemes we propose can be implemented with current experimental \ntechniques. \nWe then study the magneto-optical effect called Faraday rotation. Using the technique \nof time-resolved Faraday rotation, a recent experiment has demonstrated the \ncoherent transfer of spin between quantum dots coupled by molecules. We calculate \nthe Faraday rotation signal for a coupled dot system and show that a two-site \nHamiltonian with a transfer term captures the essential features observed in this experiment. \nWe also present results for a system of two coupled dots doped with a \nsingle electron. \nWe finally show that the coupled states of two qubits can be detected via the optical \ninteraction with a cavity in the dispersive regime. We present a Schrieffer-Wolff \ntransformation which removes the coupling of the two qubits to the cavity in leading \norder. The different two-qubit states lead to a different spectral shift of the cavity \nline. For a sufficiently low cavity linewidth, this enables the direct readout of a \ntwo-qubit system.
Abstract The performance of modern quantum devices in communication, metrology or microscopy relies on the quantum–classical interaction which is generally described by the theory of decoherence. Despite the high relevance for long coherence times in quantum electronics, decoherence mechanisms mediated by the Coulomb force are not well understood yet and several competing theoretical models exist. Here, we present an experimental study of the Coulomb-induced decoherence of free electrons in a superposition state in a biprism electron interferometer close to a semiconducting and metallic surface. The decoherence was determined through a contrast loss at different beam path separations, surface distances and conductibilities. To clarify the current literature discussion, four theoretical models were compared to our data. We could rule out three of them and got good agreement with a theory based on macroscopic quantum electrodynamics. The results will enable the determination and minimization of specific decoherence channels in the design of novel quantum instruments.
Quantum entanglement is central to both the foundations of quantum mechanics and the development of new technologies in information processing, communication, and sensing. Entanglement has been realised in a variety of physical systems, spanning atoms, ions, photons, collective excitations, and hybrid combinations of particles. Remarkably, however, photons and free electrons -- the quanta of light and their most elementary sources -- have never been observed in an entangled state. Here, we demonstrate quantum entanglement between free electrons and photons. We show that entanglement is produced when an electron, prepared in a superposition of two beams, passes a nanostructure and generates transition radiation in a polarisation state tied to the electron path. By implementing quantum state tomography, we reconstruct the full density matrix of the electron-photon pair, and show that the Peres-Horodecki separability criterion is violated by more than 7 standard deviations. Based on this foundational element of emerging free-electron quantum optics, we anticipate manifold developments in enhanced electron imaging and spectroscopy beyond the standard quantum limit. More broadly, the ability to generate and measure entanglement opens electron microscopy to previously inaccessible quantum observables and correlations in solids and nanostructures.