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arXiv:cond-mat/0009432 · Nanotechnology

Magnetic qubits as hardware for quantum computers

Javier Tejada, Eugene M. Chudnovsky, Enrique del Barco, J. M. Hernández, Timothy P. Spiller

Published May 25, 2001• 307 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We propose two potential realizations for quantum bits based on nanometre-scale magnetic particles of large spin S and high-anisotropy molecular clusters. In case (1) the bit-value basis states |0⟩ and |1⟩ are the ground and first excited spin states S z = S and S -1, separated by an energy gap given by the ferromagnetic resonance frequency. In case (2), when there is significant tunnelling through the anisotropy barrier, the qubit states correspond to the symmetric, |0⟩, and antisymmetric, |1⟩, combinations of the twofold degenerate ground state S z = ± S . In each case the temperature of operation must be low compared to the energy gap, Δ, between the states |0⟩ and |1⟩. The gap Δ in case (2) can be controlled with an external magnetic field perpendicular to the easy axis of the molecular cluster. The states of different molecular clusters and magnetic particles may be entangled by connecting them by superconducting lines with Josephson switches, leading to the potential for quantum computing hardware.

DOI
10.1088/0957-4484/12/2/323

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We propose two potential realizations for quantum bits based on nanometre-scale magnetic particles of large spin S and high-anisotropy molecular clusters. In case (1) the bit-value basis states |0⟩ and |1⟩ are the ground and first excited spin states S z = S and S -1, separated by an energy gap given by the ferromagnetic resonance frequency. In case (2), when there is significant tunnelling through the anisotropy barrier, the qubit states correspond to the symmetric, |0⟩, and antisymmetric, |1⟩, combinations of the twofold degenerate ground state S z = ± S . In each case the temperature of operation must be low compared to the energy gap, Δ, between the states |0⟩ and |1⟩. The gap Δ in case (2) can be controlled with an external magnetic field perpendicular to the easy axis of the molecular cluster. The states of different molecular clusters and magnetic particles may be entangled by connecting them by superconducting lines with Josephson switches, leading to the potential for quantum computing hardware.
We study the low energy states of one-dimensional spin chain clusters consisting of three spin-1/2 Heisenberg particles. When applying an external magnetic field on the spin chain cluster, the ground state doublet will generate Zeeman splitting. As a two-level quantum system, the split ground state doublet can be defined as a new 'spin cluster qubit'. The cluster quibit is shown to be more robust with a smaller decoherence rate. We realize universal single-qubit gates with the algebraic dynamical method, by applying a time-dependent magnetic field on the spin cluster. We also investigate a two-qubit system made up of two such Heisenberg spin chain clusters which interact through a tunable Heisenberg coupling. In the two-qubit product basis, the controlled quantum phase gates can be generated by applying a magnetic field along the z-axis on the system of the two clusters. One can realize the controlled-NOT gate through a three-step time evolution by adjusting the corresponding physical parameters. Our scheme involves two kinds of dynamically distinct operations, which is much simpler and more feasible.
We study the low energy states of finite spin chains with isotropic (Heisenberg) and anisotropic (XY and Ising-like) antiferromagnetic exchange interaction with uniform and nonuniform coupling constants. We show that for an odd number of sites a spin cluster qubit can be defined in terms of the ground state doublet. This qubit is remarkably insensitive to the placement and coupling anisotropy of spins within the cluster. One- and two-qubit quantum gates can be generated by magnetic fields and intercluster exchange, and leakage during quantum gate operation is small. Spin cluster qubits inherit the long decoherence times and short gate operation times of single spins. Control of single spins is hence not necessary for the realization of universal quantum gates.
We review the progress made in integrating magnetic molecules containing transition metal ions into nanoelectronic solid-state devices and using them as molecular spin qubits. Molecular spin qubits offer numerous advantages over other material platforms, such as being inherently quantum systems with discrete energy levels, having a rich variety of possible chemical designs, and being synthesizable in large quantities with atomic precision. However, the integration of magnetic molecules into practical and scalable molecular spin qubit devices (MSQDs) that offer initialization, coherent control, and readout of quantum spin states remains one of the major bottlenecks on the way toward applications of these systems in quantum computing technologies. We discuss the evolution of the field of MSQDs and review the first successful implementation of essential qubit operations in a single-molecule transistor based on a TbPc 2 molecule. Further development has been achieved through the merging of molecular electronics with the circuit quantum electrodynamics (cQED) approach where molecular spin states can be manipulated by the microwave frequency photons confined in a superconducting waveguide resonator. We discuss examples of such hybrid devices operating via coupling of a superconducting resonator to large spin ensembles, such as bulk samples and thin films. We also review a possible architecture for single-molecule cQED devices and the potential advantages that it offers. Then, we highlight the possibility and benefits of the optical initialization and readout of molecular spin states. This approach has been realized by using an optical pumping technique for the initialization and changes in photoluminescence for the readout of large molecular spin ensembles coupled to a superconducting resonator. The field of MSQDs is highly interdisciplinary, bringing together progress in synthetic chemistry, molecular electronics, cQED, and optical measurements. While it is still in its infancy, there are promising theoretical designs and encouraging proof-of-concept experiments, and we discuss several proposed device architectures that are eagerly awaiting experimental realization. Advances in hybrid MSQDs will open horizons for quantum technologies.
We show that a wide range of spin clusters with antiferromagnetic intracluster exchange interaction allows one to define a qubit. For these spin cluster qubits, initialization, quantum gate operation, and readout are possible using the same techniques as for single spins. Quantum gate operation for the spin cluster qubit does not require control over the intracluster exchange interaction. Electric and magnetic fields necessary to effect quantum gates need only be controlled on the length scale of the spin cluster rather than the scale for a single spin. Here, we calculate the energy gap separating the logical qubit states from the next excited state and the matrix elements which determine quantum gate operation times. We discuss spin cluster qubits formed by one- and two-dimensional arrays of s=1/2s=1/2s=1/2 spins as well as clusters formed by spins s>1/2.s>1/2.s>1/2. We illustrate the advantages of spin cluster qubits for various suggested implementations of spin qubits and analyze the scaling of decoherence time with spin cluster size.
The highly parallel nature of the fundamental principles of quantum mechanics means that certain key resource-intensive tasks --- including searching, code decryption and medical, chemical and material simulations --- can be computed polynomially or even exponentially faster with a quantum computer. In spite of its remarkably fast development, the field of quantum computing is still young, and a large-scale prototype using any one of the candidate quantum bits (or 'qubits') under investigation has yet to be developed. Spin-based qubits in condensed matter systems are excellent candidates. Spins controlled using magnetic resonance have provided the first, most advanced, and highest fidelity experimental demonstrations of quantum algorithms to date. Despite having highly promising control characteristics, most physical ensembles investigated using magnetic resonance are unable to produce entanglement, a critical missing ingredient for a pure-state quantum computer. Quantum objects are said to be entangled if they cannot be described individually: they remain fundamentally linked regardless of their physical separation. Such highly non-classical states can be exploited for a host of quantum technologies including teleportation, metrology, and quantum computation. Here I describe how to experimentally create, control and characterise entangled quantum ensembles using magnetic resonance. I first explore the relationship between entanglement and quantum metrology and demonstrate a sensitivity enhancement over classical resources using molecular sensors controlled with liquid-state nuclear magnetic resonance. I then examine the computational potential of irreversible relaxation processes in combination with traditional reversible magnetic resonance control techniques. I show how irreversible processes can polarise both nuclear and electronic spins, which improves the quality of qubit initialisation. I discuss the process of quantum state tomography, where an arbitrary quantum state can be accurately measured and characterised, including components which go undetected using traditional magnetic resonance techniques. Lastly, I combine the above findings to initialise, create and characterise entanglement between an ensemble of electron and nuclear spin defects in silicon. I further this by generating pseudo-entanglement between an ensemble of nuclear spins mediated by a transient electron spin in a molecular system. These findings help pave the way towards a particular architecture for a scalable, spin-based quantum computer.
The motion of a particle along a one-dimensional closed curve in a plane is considered. The only restriction on the shape of the loop is that it must be invariant under a twofold rotation about an axis perpendicular to the plane of motion. Along the curve a symmetric double-well potential is present leading to a twofold degeneracy of the classical ground state. In quantum mechanics, this degeneracy is lifted: the energies of the ground state and the first excited state are separated from each other by a slight difference \ensuremath{\Delta}E, the tunnel splitting. Although a magnetic field perpendicular to the plane of the loop does not influence the classical motion of the charged particle, the quantum-mechanical separation of levels turns out to be a function of its strength B. The dependence of \ensuremath{\Delta}E on the field B is oscillatory: for specific discrete values Bn{\mathit{B}}_{\mathit{n}}Bn​ the splitting drops to zero, indicating a twofold degeneracy of the ground state. This result is obtained within the path-integral formulation of quantum mechanics; in particular, the semiclassical instanton method is used. The origin of the quenched splitting is intuitively obvious: it is due to the fact that the configuration space of the system is not simply connected, thus allowing for destructive interference of quantum-mechanical amplitudes. From an abstract point of view this phenomenon can be traced back to the existence of a topological term in the Lagrangian and a nonsimply connected configuration space. In principle, it should be possible to observe the splitting in appropriately fabricated mesoscopic rings consisting of normally conducting metal.