Diagnosis and Mitigation of Correlated Errors in Superconducting Qubits from Ionizing Radiation

ORAL

Abstract

Ionizing radiation causes momentary events of spatially-correlated superconducting qubit errors. We present the detection of multi-qubit correlated relaxation events in coincidence with cosmic ray secondary particles using scintillating detectors. These measurements identify the overall proportion of qubit errors caused by cosmic ray secondary particles versus all other sources of relaxation errors. The in-situ detection of radiation informs the sensitivity of each qubit to cosmic rays that penetrate the device substrate. Our findings reveal qubit device architectures that are less susceptible to the quasiparticles created by radiation absorption. The results of this cosmic ray coincidence measurement informs strategies that reduce the impact of ionizing radiation on quantum error correction schemes.

*This research was supported by an appointment to the Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program at MIT, administered by Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education through an interagency agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. This research was funded by the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering under Air Force Contract No. FA8702-15-D-0001. The views and conclusions contained herein are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies or endorsements, either expressed or implied, of the US Government.

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Presenters

  • Patrick M Harrington

    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Authors

  • Patrick M Harrington

    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Mingyu Li

    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT

  • Wouter Van De Pontseele

    • Massachussets Institute of Technology
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT

  • Daniel Mayer

    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT

  • David K Kim

    • MIT Lincoln Lab
    • MIT Lincoln Laboratory

  • Bethany M Niedzielski

    • MIT Lincoln Lab
    • MIT Lincoln Laboratory

  • Alexander Melville

    • MIT Lincoln Laboratory

  • Mollie E Schwartz

    • MIT Lincoln Laboratory

  • Jonilyn L Yoder

    • MIT Lincoln Lab
    • MIT Lincoln Laboratory

  • Jeffrey A Grover

    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Kyle Serniak

    • MIT Lincoln Laboratory

  • Joseph A Formaggio

    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT

  • William D Oliver

    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), MIT Lincoln Laboratory
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Lincoln Laboratory