Semiconductor system with transitional metal impurity for quantum information processing
AssigneeThe University of Chicago
InventorsDavid Awschalom, Berk Diler, William Koehl, Samuel James Whiteley
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Abstract
Methods and devices are disclosed for implementing quantum information processing based on electron spins in semiconductor and transition metal compositions. The transition metal electron orbitals split under semiconductor crystal field. The electron ground states are used as qubits. The transitions between the ground states involve electron spin flip. The semiconductor and transition metal compositions may be further included in optical cavities to facilitate quantum information processing. Quantum logic operations may be performed using single color or two color coherent resonant optical excitations via an excited electron state.
Claims20
A quantum information processing or storage device comprising:
- at least one optical element;
- a semiconductor crystal composition comprising
- a semiconductor crystal host;
- and
- non-rare earth transition metal ions having a d-N electron orbital configuration,
- wherein the non-rare earth transition metal ions substitute at a corresponding plurality of crystal sites of the semiconductor crystal host;
- wherein a crystal field of the semiconductor crystal host splits d-N electron orbitals of the non-rare earth transition metal ions into lower energy orbitals and higher energy orbitals with a crystal field splitting;
- wherein the lower energy orbitals form at least two ground states and at least one excited state;
- wherein electronic transitions between the at least two ground states and the at least one excited state are optically controllable with negligible mixing from the higher energy orbitals;
- and
- wherein the at least one optical element is configured to interact with the semiconductor crystal composition for quantum information processing or quantum information storage using optical excitations driving the electronic transitions between the at least two ground states and the at least one excited state.
In a quantum information processing device comprising a semiconductor crystal host in which each of a plurality of lattice sites of the semiconductor crystal host are substituted with a non-rare earth transition metal ion having d-N electrons, a method for quantum information processing or quantum information storage, comprising:
- exciting the non-rare earth transition metal ions with coherent optical fields resonant with at least one optical transition involving at least one electronic ground state and at least one excited state of the non-rare earth transition metal ions;
- wherein the non-rare earth transition metal ions substitute at a corresponding plurality of crystal sites of the semiconductor crystal host;
- wherein a crystal field in the semiconductor crystal host splits orbitals of the d-N electrons of the non-rare earth transition metal ions into lower energy orbitals and higher energy orbitals by a crystal field splitting;
- wherein the lower energy orbitals form the at least one electronic ground state and the at least one excited state;
- and
- wherein the at least one optical transition between the at least one electronic ground state and the at least one excited state are optically controllable with negligible mixing from the higher energy orbitals.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.