Quantum spin dynamics

Abstract:

Superposition and entanglement are uniquely quantum phenomena. Superposition incorporates a phase that contains information surpassing any classical mixture. Entanglement offers correlations between measurements in quantum systems that are stronger than any that would be possible classically. These give quantum computing its spectacular potential, but the implications extend far beyond quantum information processing. Early applications may be found in entanglement-enhanced sensing and metrology. Quantum spins in condensed matter offer promising candidates for investigating and exploiting superposition and entanglement, and enormous progress is being made in quantum control of such systems. In gallium arsenide (GaAs), individual electron spins can be manipulated and measured, and singlet-triplet states can be controlled in double-dot structures. In silicon, individual electron spins can be detected by ionization of phosphorus donors, and information can be transferred from electron spins to nuclear spins to provide long memory times. Electron and nuclear spins can be manipulated in nitrogen atoms incarcerated in fullerene molecules, which in turn can be assembled in ordered arrays. Spin states of charged nitrogen vacancy centres in diamond can be manipulated and read optically. Collective spin states in a range of materials systems offer scope for holographic storage of information. Conditions are now excellent for implementing superposition and entanglement in spintronic devices, thereby opening up a new era of quantum technologies.

Abstract:

Pyrrolidine derivatives of N@C60 have been synthesized and characterized. The photochemical stability of the derivatives as well as pristine N@C60 are studied and compared. While the attachment of a pyrrolidine group to C60 cage significantly lowers the photolytic stability of N@C60, the effect of a peripheral optically active pyrenyl group on photoinduced decay is negligible. A mechanism involving carbon-carbon bond dissociation and a subsequent inversion of the endohedral nitrogen atom is proposed to account for the observed spin loss. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Abstract:

Electron spin qubits in molecular systems offer high reproducibility and the ability to self-assemble into larger architectures. However, interactions between neighboring qubits are "always on," and although the electron spin coherence times can be several hundred microseconds, these are still much shorter than typical times for nuclear spins. Here we implement an electron-nuclear hybrid scheme which uses coherent transfer between electron and nuclear spin degrees of freedom in order to both effectively turn on or off interqubit coupling mediated by dipolar interactions and benefit from the long nuclear spin decoherence times (T2n). We transfer qubit states between the electron and N15 nuclear spin in N15@C60 with a two-way process fidelity of 88%, using a series of tuned microwave and radio frequency pulses and measure a nuclear spin coherence lifetime of over 100 ms. © 2011 American Physical Society.