Gradient matter-wave gradiometry
AssigneeColdQuanta, Inc.
InventorDana Zachary Anderson
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Each atom in a population of atoms can be characterized by a probability density distribution (PDD). Using a shaken-lattice technique, each PDD is split into a pair of sub-PDDs. The sub-PDDs of a pair are propagated along different paths to a common endpoint of the paths, resulting in a matter-wave interference pattern that encodes a net phase between the paths, e.g., due to differential effects associated with a gravity gradient. The matter-wave interference pattern can be measured to yield a respective measurement for each atom. The measurements can be aggregated to yield a result distribution that can serve as a classical domain estimate of the quantum-domain matter-wave interference pattern, and thus of the gravity gradient. Other embodiments can determine gradients for other types of fields.
Claims13
A matter-wave interferometry process comprising:
- splitting a probability amplitude distribution (PDD) of a quantum particle into a first sub-PDD and a second sub-PDD;
- first propagating the first sub-PDD along a first section of a first path and the second sub-PDD along a first section of a second path so as to establish a first phase difference between the first sub-PDD and the second sub-PDD, the first phase difference having a first sense;
- second propagating the first sub-PDD along a second section of the first path and the second sub-PDD along a second section of the second path so as to establish a second phase difference between the first sub-PDD and the second sub-PDD, the second phase difference having a second sense opposite the first sense;
- at a common endpoint of the first path and the second path, combining the first sub-PDD and the second sub-PDD to generate an interference pattern representing a net phase corresponding to a difference in magnitudes of the first phase difference and the second phase difference;
- and
- determining a field gradient or a jerk magnitude or a combination of the field gradient and the jerk magnitude based on the net phase.
A matter-wave interferometry system comprising:
- a vacuum system for maintaining a population of quantum particles in a vacuum of pressure below one millikelvin, the quantum particles having respective probability amplitude distributions (PDDs);
- and
- a controller for performing the following operations for each quantum particle of the population of quantum particles:
- splitting a probability amplitude distribution (PDD) of the quantum particle into a first sub-PDD and a second sub-PDD;
- first propagating the first sub-PDD along a first section of a first path and the second sub-PDD along a first section of a second path so as to establish a first phase difference between the first sub-PDD and the second sub-PDD, the first phase difference having a first sense;
- second propagating the first sub-PDD along a second section of the first path and the second sub-PDD along a second section of the second path so as to establish a second phase difference between the first sub-PDD and the second sub-PDD, the second phase difference having a second sense opposite the first sense;
- and
- at a common endpoint of the first path and the second path, combining the first sub-PDD and the second sub-PDD to generate an interference pattern characterized by a net phase corresponding to a difference in magnitudes of the first phase difference and the second phase difference;
- a measurement system for converting the interference pattern from a quantum domain to a classical domain to yield an estimate of the net phase in a form of a distribution of measurement results;
- and
- a data analyzer for converting the distribution of measurement results into a value of a field gradient or into a value of a jerk or a value of a combination of the field gradient and the jerk.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.