Ultrafast Generation of Large Schrodinger Cat States

ORAL

Abstract

Using a series of spin-dependent kicks on a trapped Yb$+$ ion, we create large, entangled, Schrodinger cat states. We prepare the ion in a superposition of its two m$_{\mathrm{f}}=$0 hyperfine ground states, representing an effective spin-1/2 system. Trapped in a harmonic potential, the ion is illuminated with a specially shaped, 1.5 ns pulse that imparts a momentum kick on the ion with a spin-dependent direction. A fast Pockels cell allows us to change the direction of the spin-dependent kick from each subsequent pulse out of an 80MHz mode-locked laser. By concatenating a series of these very high fidelity spin-dependent kicks, we separate the ion's wave packet into two, spatially distinct states separated by about 200 recoil momenta and involving about 70 phonons. This method for creating a Schrodinger cat state is not time-limited by the trap frequency, and does not rely on confinement in the Lamb-Dicke regime.

*This work is supported by grants from the U.S. Army Research Office with funding from the DARPA OLE program, IARPA, and the MURI program; and the NSF Physics Frontier Center at JQI.

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Authors

  • Kale Johnson

    • Joint Quantum Institute, University of Maryland Department of Physics and National Institute of Standards and Technology, College Park, Maryland 20742

  • Brian Neyenhuis

    • Joint Quantum Institute, University of Maryland Department of Physics and National Institute of Standards and Technology, College Park, Maryland 20742

  • David Wong-Campos

    • Joint Quantum Institute, University of Maryland Department of Physics and National Institute of Standards and Technology, College Park, Maryland 20742

  • Jonathan Mizrahi

    • Joint Quantum Institute, University of Maryland Department of Physics and National Institute of Standards and Technology, College Park, Maryland 20742

  • Wes Campbell

    • UCLA
    • Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095
    • Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095

  • Christopher Monroe

    • JQI and University of Maryland
    • Joint Quantum Institute, University of Maryland Department of Physics and National Institute of Standards and Technology, College Park, Maryland 20742