Kapitza-Dirac Blockade: A Universal Tool for the Deterministic Preparation of Non-Gaussian Oscillator States

Author(s)
Wayne Cheng-Wei Huang, Herman Batelaan, Markus Arndt
Abstract

Harmonic oscillators count among the most fundamental quantum systems with important applications in quantum optics, solid-state physics, molecular physics, nanoparticle trapping, and quantum information processing. They are distinguished by their equidistant energy level spacing, a feature that is often desired but also a challenge if the goal is to deterministically populate specific target states. Here, we propose to use the inelastic Kapitza-Dirac effect as a means to solve this challenge. Quantum interference in inelastic Kapitza-Dirac scattering can suppress the sequential climbing of harmonic oscillator states and achieve selective excitation to Schr\"{o}dinger cat states or other non-Gaussian states for a wide range of harmonically trapped particles. We discuss the feasibility of experiments with single electrons, complex molecules, and dielectric nanoparticles.

Organisation(s)
Quantum Optics, Quantum Nanophysics and Quantum Information
External organisation(s)
Northwestern University, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Journal
Physical Review Letters
Volume
126
No. of pages
7
ISSN
0031-9007
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.126.253601
Publication date
11-2020
Peer reviewed
Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
103025 Quantum mechanics, 103026 Quantum optics
Keywords
ASJC Scopus subject areas
General Physics and Astronomy
Portal url
https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/0ce4b598-7e08-4838-8341-07d2a0a95b0b