Coherent diabatic ion transport and separation in a multizone trap array

Area of Science:

• Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics
• Quantum Information Science
• Ion Trapping Technologies

Background:

• Trapped ions are leading candidates for quantum computing due to their long coherence times and high-fidelity gate operations.
• Efficient ion transport and separation are critical for scaling up trapped-ion quantum processors.
• Current methods often involve significant time overhead, limiting overall computational speed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the dynamics of single and multiple ion transport and separation in a multizone linear Paul trap.
• To quantify the speed and fidelity of ion manipulation for scalable quantum information processing.
• To reduce the time overhead associated with ion shuttling operations.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a multizone linear Paul trap to confine and manipulate ions.
• Experimentally demonstrated the transport of single and multiple beryllium ions (9Be+).
• Measured ion motion and excitation levels during transport and separation processes.

Main Results:

• Achieved transport of a single 9Be+ ion over 370 μm in 8 μs with minimal motional excitation (0.1 quanta).
• Successfully transported two ions with similar efficiency.
• Separated ion chains of up to 9 ions into distinct potential wells, with two-ion separation completed in 55 μs with ~2 quanta excitation per ion.

Conclusions:

• Fast and efficient ion transport and separation are achievable in linear Paul traps.
• These advancements significantly reduce time overhead, paving the way for scalable trapped-ion quantum computers.
• Optimized ion dynamics are essential for practical quantum information processing architectures.