Driven-dissipative quantum systems under a microscope
Abstract
Quantum mechanics is often considered in the context of a closed quantum system, i.e. one that is fully coherent and isolated. Yet, essentially all quantum mechanical systems realized in nature or in engineered settings are open, in that they do interact with some sort of external environment that sur- rounds them. This environment drives the quantum system, inducing transitions and driving temporal evolution, and also dissipates energy and information stored in the quantum system. Gaining a better un- derstanding of driven-dissipative quantum systems, including how they differ essentially from idealized closed systems, is essential not only for understanding myriad quantum phenomena, but also for efforts to engineer technologies based on quantum mechanics. In this project, we will employ single neutral atoms, trapped in vacuum and arrayed within a high-finesse optical cavity. High-spatial-resolution optics allows us to trap, position, drive, and detect the quantum array at the single atom level, so that our system operates as a quantum gas microscope. The coupling to the optical cavity field mediates interactions among atoms, both in their mechanical and their internal quantum degrees of freedom. Simultaneously, the cavity provides a controlled dissipation channel, opening the quantum system in a highly programmable manner. The project has three specific aims. First, we will realize the optomechanical Dicke phase transition - a symmetry-breaking, self-organization transition - and characterize mesoscopic effects within arrays with well defined atom number. Second, we will realize internal-state phase transitions, including the optomagnonic version of the Dicke phase transition, with consequence for many-body quantum optics and quantum information science. Third, we will use light-mediated atom-atom interactions in a highly programmable fashion to build driven-dissipative systems that solve Boolean combinatorial problems and realize a rich set of physical problems. Altogether, this research program will have broad impact on many-body quantum optics, open quantum mechanics, the emerging fields of quantum-limited and quantum-enabled sensing, and quantum information science. This abstract is intended for public release.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Feb 06, 2025
- Source ID
- FA95502410221
Entities
People
- Dan Stamper-Kurn
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- United States Air Force
- University of California Regents