QUANTUM-Seminar

Using the high-intensity radiation of the European X-ray Free-Electron Laser, we recently succeeded to excite the sharpest atomic transition in the hard X-ray range, the 12.4 keV nuclear resonance of the stable isotope Scandium-45 [1]. With its extremely narrow natural linewidth of 1.4 femto-eV, it opens not only new possibilities for the development of a nuclear clock, but also for research linked to the foundations of physics, such as time variations of the fundamental constants, the search for dark matter as well as probing the foundations of relativity theory. Furthermore, our experiment demonstrates the great potential of self-seeding X-ray lasers with high pulse rates as a promising platform for the spectroscopy of extremely narrow-band nuclear resonances. The next steps towards a nuclear clock based on Scandium-45 require a further increase of the spectral photon flux using improved X-ray laser sources at 12.4 keV and the development of frequency combs reaching up to this energy. [1] Yuri Shvyd’ko et al., Nature 622, 471 (2023)

In these days, we are witnessing amazing progress in both the variety and quality of platforms for quantum computation and quantum communication. Since algorithms and communication protocols designed for traditional 'classical' hardware do not employ the superposition principle and thus provide no gain even when used on quantum hardware, we are in need of developing specific quantum algorithms and quantum communication protocols that make clever use of the superposition principle and extract a quantum advantage. "Quantum hardware needs quantum software", so to say. Furthermore, due to noise in the qubits, known as decoherence, an additional quantum-specific software layer is required that emulates a perfect quantum machine on top of a noise one. I will demonstrate our recent work on this subject with theorems as well data from university and commercial quantum devices.

In driven non-linear systems, various kinds of bifurcations can be observed on their route to chaos. From the evolution of Floquet multipliers one can extract information which serves as a precursor for phase transitions and dynamical instabilities. This method is applied in classical non-linear physics, for example, to obtain early warning signals. Utilising our impressive control over an atom-cavity platform, we are able to prepare our system in various dynamical regimes and study the bifurcation experimentally in a quantum gas to obtain insights that could potentially be applied to more complex systems. We prepare a Bose-Einstein condensate inside the centre of a cavity and pumping it perpendicular to the cavity axis with a standing wave light field. Upon crossing a critical pump strength, we observe a pitchfork phase transition from a normal to a steady state self-organized phase [1]. Employing an open three- level Dicke model, this transition can be understood as a transition between two fixpoints, indicating a pitchfork bifurcation. If the pump strength is increased further, the system undergoes a Hopf bifurcation. This causes limit cycles, which have time crystalline properties, to emerge [2]. In this regime, our model no longer shows fixpoints but stable attractive periodic orbits [3]. For strong pumping, we observe a second bifurcation, in our case a Neimark-Sacker bifurcation. Its main characteristics is an oscillation with two incommensurate frequencies, this may indicate the formation of a continuous time quasicrystal [4]. Finally, in the regime of very strong pumping, we observe chaotic dynamics with many contributing frequencies. References: [1] J. Klinder, et al., PNAS 112, 11 (2015) [2] P. Kongkhambut, et al., Science 307 (2022) [3] J. Skulte, et al., arXiv:2401.05332 (2023) [4] P. Kongkhambut, et al., manuscript in preparation

The concept of universality has shaped our understanding of many-body physics, but is mostly limited to homogenous systems. The seminar introduces a definition of universal scaling on a non-homogeneous graph. The corresponding scaling theory is expected to depend only on a single parameter, the spectral dimension ds, which plays the role of the relevant parameter on complex geometries. We will then focus on a concrete example, the long-range diluted graph (LRDG), which allows to tune the value of the spectral dimension continuously. By means of extensive numerical simulations, we probe the scaling exponents of a simple instance of O(N) symmetric models on the LRDG showing quantitative agreement with the theoretical prediction of universal scaling in fractional dimensions.

TBA

TBA

Topological classification of matter has become crucial for understanding (meta-)materials, with associated quantized bulk responses and robust topological boundary effects [1]. Topological phenomena have also recently garnered significant interest in nonlinear systems [2]. In particular, weak nonlinearities can result in parametric gain, leading to “non-Hermitian” metamaterials and the associated topological classification of open systems [3]. Here, we venture into this expanding frontier using an approach that moves away from quasilinear approximations around the closed system classification. We harness instead the topology of structural stability of vector flows, and thus propose a new topological graph invariant to characterize nonlinear out-of-equilibrium dynamical systems via their equations of motion. We exemplify our approach on the ubiquitous model of a dissipative bosonic Kerr cavity, subject both to one- and two-photon drives. Using our classification, we can identify the topological origin of phase transitions in the system, as well as explain the robustness of a multicritical point in the phase diagram. We, furthermore, identify that the invariant distinguishes population inversion transitions in the system in similitude to a Z2 index. Our approach is readily extendable to coupled nonlinear cavities by considering a tensorial graph index. References [1] T. Ozawa, H. M. Price, A. Amo, N. Goldman, M. Hafezi, L. Lu, M. Rechtsman, D. Schuster, J. Simon, O. Zilberberg, and I. Carusotto, Rev. Mod. Phys. 91, 015006 (2019). [2] A. Szameit, and M. C. Rechtsman, Nat. Phys. (2024). [3] K. Ding, C. Fang, and G. Ma, Nat. Rev. Phys. 4, 745 (2022).

The study of open quantum systems, quantum thermodynamics and quantum many-body spin physics in realistic solid-state platforms, has been a long-standing goal in quantum and condensed-matter physics. In this talk I will address these topics through the platform of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) spins in diamond, in the context of bath characterization, purification (or cooling) of a spin bath as a quantum resource and for enhanced metrology and sensing. I will first describe our work on characterizing noise using robust techniques for quantum control ([1], in collaboration with Ra’am Uzdin). This approach suppresses sensitivity to coherent errors while enabling noise characterization, providing a useful tool for the study of complicated open quantum systems, with the potential for contributions to enhanced sensing. I will then present a general theoretical framework we developed for Hamiltonian engineering in an interacting spin system [2]. This framework is applied to the coupling of the spin ensemble to a spin bath, including both coherent and dissipative dynamics [3]. Using these tools I will present a scheme for efficient purification of the spin bath, surpassing the current state-of-the-art and providing a path toward applications in quantum technologies, such as enhanced MRI sensing. Finally, if time permits, I will describe our work in using NV-based magnetic microscopy to implement quantum sensing in various modalities. I will present advanced techniques for improving sensing bandwidth using compressed sensing and machine learning. Demonstrations of NV sensing capabilities will include measurements of 2D vdW magnetic materials, and specifically the phase transition of FGT through local imaging of magnetic domains in flakes of varying thicknesses [4], as well as a technique for sensing radical concentrations through the change in the charge state of shallow NVs ([5], in collaboration with Uri Banin). 1. P. PENSHIN ET. AL., SUBMITTED. 2. K. I. O. BEN’ATTAR, D. FARFURNIK AND N. BAR-GILL, PHYS. REV. RESEARCH 2, 013061 (2020). 3. K. I. O. BEN’ATTAR ET. AL., IN PREPARATION. 4. G. HAIM ET. AL., IN PREPARATION. 5. Y. NINIO ET. AL., ACS PHOTONICS 8, 7, 1917-1921 (2021).

The nitrogen-vacancy (NV) point defect in diamond has emerged as a new class of quantum sensor, enabling the detection of magnetic fields on unprecedented length scales. This technique allows the measurement of magnetic resonance signals on the nanoscale down to a single electronic or nuclear spin. In my talk, I will briefly introduce the fundamentals of diamond-based quantum sensing. In the second part, I will discuss recent developments in my group to use the optical readout of the NV centres to perform magnetic resonance microscopy in real space inside microfluidic structures. The remaining obstacles to this novel microscopy technique and future goals are discussed in the final part.