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Unitary Subharmonic Response and Floquet Majorana Modes
Oles Shtanko1,2, Ramis Movassagh3
1Joint Quantum Institute, NIST/University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|September 10, 2020
Summary
Researchers discovered that Majorana fermions exhibit a unique spin oscillation, known as subharmonic response (SR), which is crucial for topological quantum computing. Engineered disorder can stabilize these Majorana modes, paving the way for quantum advancements.
Area of Science:
- Quantum physics
- Condensed matter physics
- Topological quantum computation
Background:
- Non-Abelian statistics, exemplified by Majorana fermions, are key for topological quantum computers.
- Detecting and manipulating these excitations is crucial for advancing quantum computing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish a link between Majorana fermions and unitary subharmonic response (SR) in driven systems.
- To explore methods for stabilizing Majorana modes for quantum applications.
Main Methods:
- Investigating nonequilibrium initial states in periodically driven systems.
- Analyzing spin oscillations and lifetimes of unpaired Majorana modes.
- Exploring the role of disorder in stabilizing subharmonic response.
Main Results:
- Unpaired Majorana modes exhibit localized spin oscillations with twice the driving period (SR).
- These modes can possess exponentially long lifetimes in clean systems.
- Engineered disorder can stabilize the subharmonic response of Majorana modes, overcoming limitations in translationally invariant systems.
Conclusions:
- The study reveals a connection between Majorana fermions and subharmonic response, offering a new avenue for their detection and manipulation.
- Stabilizing Majorana modes via engineered disorder is a promising strategy for robust topological quantum computation.
- The findings suggest practical observation using current superconducting circuits and cold atomic systems.
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