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Digital atom interferometer with single particle control on a discretized space-time geometry.

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Title: Digital atom interferometer with single particle control on a discretized space-time geometry.
Authors: Steffen, Andreas1, Alberti, Andrea1 alberti@iap.uni-bonn.de, Alt, Wolfgang1, Belmechri, Noomen1, Hild, Sebastian1, Karski, Michał1, Widera, Artur2, Meschede, Dieter1
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 6/19/2012, Vol. 109 Issue 25, p9770-9774. 5p.
Subjects: Atom interferometers, Particles (Nuclear physics), Geometry, Spacetime, Quantum theory, Potential theory (Physics), Precision (Information retrieval), Gravitational fields
Abstract: Engineering quantum particle systems, such as quantum simulators and quantum cellular automata, relies on full coherent control of quantum paths at the single particle level. Here we present an atom interferometer operating with single trapped atoms, where single particle wave packets are controlled through spin-dependent potentials. The interferometer is constructed from a sequence of discrete operations based on a set of elementary building blocks, which permit composing arbitrary interferometer geometries in a digital manner. We use this modularity to devise a space-time analogue of the well-known spin echo technique, yielding insight into decoherence mechanisms. We also demonstrate mesoscopic derealization of single atoms with a separation-to-localization ratio exceeding 500; this result suggests their utilization beyond quantum logic applications as nano-resolution quantum probes in precision measurements, being able to measure potential gradients with precision 5 × 10-4 in units of gravitational acceleration g. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database: Engineering Source
Description
Abstract:Engineering quantum particle systems, such as quantum simulators and quantum cellular automata, relies on full coherent control of quantum paths at the single particle level. Here we present an atom interferometer operating with single trapped atoms, where single particle wave packets are controlled through spin-dependent potentials. The interferometer is constructed from a sequence of discrete operations based on a set of elementary building blocks, which permit composing arbitrary interferometer geometries in a digital manner. We use this modularity to devise a space-time analogue of the well-known spin echo technique, yielding insight into decoherence mechanisms. We also demonstrate mesoscopic derealization of single atoms with a separation-to-localization ratio exceeding 500; this result suggests their utilization beyond quantum logic applications as nano-resolution quantum probes in precision measurements, being able to measure potential gradients with precision 5 × 10-4 in units of gravitational acceleration g. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:00278424
DOI:10.1073/pnas.1204285109