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Review of Scientific Instruments

Twisted radio frequency ion traps for all-metal string ion traps

Taro Hasegawa

Published Oct 1, 2025• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Twisted radio frequency (rf) ion traps, which have electrode configurations that are twisted variants of conventional linear rf ion traps, have been proposed and successfully demonstrated using charged alumina dust particles. When constructed from thin metal wire electrodes, the twisted traps offer excellent optical accessibility to the trapped ions, making them suitable for applications in quantum information technology. In the experimental demonstration, 14 μm-diameter alumina dust particles were charged via discharge and successfully confined in the twisted trap. A linear chain of trapped particles was observed within the trap.

DOI
10.1063/5.0293417

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Twisted radio frequency (rf) ion traps, which have electrode configurations that are twisted variants of conventional linear rf ion traps, have been proposed and successfully demonstrated using charged alumina dust particles. When constructed from thin metal wire electrodes, the twisted traps offer excellent optical accessibility to the trapped ions, making them suitable for applications in quantum information technology. In the experimental demonstration, 14 μm-diameter alumina dust particles were charged via discharge and successfully confined in the twisted trap. A linear chain of trapped particles was observed within the trap.
We report on development of a miniature linear rf ion trap and preliminary efforts to trap and laser-cool {sup 24}Mg{sup +} ions. This trap has a radial dimension of 50 {mu}m, one tenth the size of our previous trap. The rms confinement of a trapped ion scales as R{sup -2}, where R is the trap radius, so tight confinement of ions is possible at a modest rf voltage. Although the three-dimensional trapping potential for our trap cannot be calculated analytically, it can be described in terms of dimensionless parameters, measured by studying macroscopic charged particles in a much larger model of the trap. We expect that with this trap it will be possible to achieve secular frequencies high enough for resolved-sideband cooling of light ions using allowed dipole transitions. This will make it much easier to perform experiments on the quantum motion of trapped ions. This trap uses a two-wire design rather than the more common four-wire one, so the trap electrodes occlude a much smaller solid angle than either a four-wire linear trap or the more common quadrupole trap. Thus, it will be possible to couple optical devices, such as high-finesse cavities, much more efficiently to trapped ions.
We discuss a radio-frequency (rf) ion trap, the rotating-radio-frequency (rotating-rf) trap, in which the motion of a charged particle is described by trigonometric functions rather than the usual Mathieu functions of a normal rf trap. In the rotating-rf trap, a rotating quadrupole electric field confines charged particles, whereas in a normal rf trap, an oscillating quadrupole electric field does. Ion motion in a rotating-rf trap is a superposition of two nondegenerate circular secular motions and two corresponding circular micromotions. The cases of applying a uniform dc magnetic field or a quadrupole dc electric field in addition to the rotating-rf field are also discussed. Confinement in a rotating-rf trap can be tighter than in a normal linear rf trap with the same experimental parameter values.
We discuss a radio-frequency (rf) ion trap, the rotating-radio-frequency (rotating-rf) trap, in which the motion of a charged particle is described by trigonometric functions rather than the usual Mathieu functions of a normal rf trap. In the rotating-rf trap, a rotating quadrupole electric field confines charged particles, whereas in a normal rf trap, an oscillating quadrupole electric field does. Ion motion in a rotating-rf trap is a superposition of two nondegenerate circular secular motions and two corresponding circular micromotions. The cases of applying a uniform dc magnetic field or a quadrupole dc electric field in addition to the rotating-rf field are also discussed. Confinement in a rotating-rf trap can be tighter than in a normal linear rf trap with the same experimental parameter values.
The properties of single atomic ions allow them to be used as sensitive probes to measure a multitude of physical effects, ranging from light field distributions to weak force fields, for example electric or magnetic fields. However trapping and controlling ions reliably calls for a more or less encompassing electrode configuration, that depending on the realization can block a substantial amount of access to the ion. Here we present a novel radio-frequency (rf) ion trap geometry that reduces the solid angle obstructed by trap electrodes to a minimum. Since access and proper ion confinement are inherently opposing goals, we realized three different traps with access ranging from 71% to 96% of 4π to characterize the trade-offs. Fabrication, characterization, as well as promising applications of similar traps in quantum optics and field sensing are discussed.
We discuss the experimental realization of the rotating radio-frequency (rrf) trap, proposed by Hasegawa and Bollinger [Phys. Rev. A 72, 043403 (2005)]. Compared to a traditional linear rf (lrf) Paul trap, the rrf trap is a closer analogy to the popular mechanical lecture demonstration for a Paul trap. In an ion trap with reslistic, non-ideal electrode geometry, the rrf trap averages over angular variations in the effective potential. This averaging provides more uniform confinement and reduces ion loss at equal confinement strength compared with the lrf trap. This feature makes the rrf trap configuration advantageous for precision metrology application, such as electron electric dipole moment (eEDM) measurements.