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At least 721 records · Page 40
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2026

Quantum Light Imaging of the Plant Root─Rhizobacteria─System Using iLOV Fluorescence

It has been demonstrated recently that the use of specific quantum states of light for two-photon microscopy can lead to a substantial reduction of the intensity of light needed for the imaging of biological objects. This opens new ways to better understand the delicate mechanisms of the interactions of living organisms in the rhizosphere on an extended time scale without optical damage or alteration of their native behavior. Herein, we report a successful realization of entangled two-photon excited fluorescence microscopy of wheat plant roots and a set of biological samples, including purified iLOV protein, bacterial cells expressing iLOV, and combination of these under an extremely low excitation intensity. The entangled two-photon coupling strength of iLOV was modeled using electronic structure calculations which demonstrated that the FMN chromophore in the iLOV protein has an entangled two-photon absorption (ETPA) cross section that is large enough for imaging using weak quantum light for fluorescence excitation. Successful imaging of plant-associated Pantoea sp. YR343 cells expressing iLOV validates the feasibility of using iLOV as a molecular label for characterizing plant-microbe interactions based on entangled photon imaging. In conclusion, the results demonstrate the advantageous use of entangled photon imaging under noninvasive and nondestructive conditions.

Varnavksi, Oleg [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI ↗
DOE OSTI2023

Quantifying high-dimensional spatial entanglement with a single-photon-sensitive time-stamping camera

High-dimensional entanglement is a promising resource for quantum technologies. Being able to certify it for any quantum state is essential. However, to date, experimental entanglement certification methods are imperfect and leave some loopholes open. Using a single-photon-sensitive time-stamping camera, we quantify high-dimensional spatial entanglement by collecting all output modes and without background subtraction, two critical steps on the route toward assumptions-free entanglement certification. We show position-momentum Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen (EPR) correlations and quantify the entanglement of formation of our source to be larger than 2.8 along both transverse spatial axes, indicating a dimension higher than 14. Our work overcomes important challenges in photonic entanglement quantification and paves the way toward the development of practical quantum information processing protocols based on high-dimensional entanglement.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Bayesian tomography of high-dimensional on-chip biphoton frequency combs with randomized measurements

Abstract Owing in large part to the advent of integrated biphoton frequency combs, recent years have witnessed increased attention to quantum information processing in the frequency domain for its inherent high dimensionality and entanglement compatible with fiber-optic networks. Quantum state tomography of such states, however, has required complex and precise engineering of active frequency mixing operations, which are difficult to scale. To address these limitations, we propose a solution that employs a pulse shaper and electro-optic phase modulator to perform random operations instead of mixing in a prescribed manner. We successfully verify the entanglement and reconstruct the full density matrix of biphoton frequency combs generated from an on-chip Si 3 N 4 microring resonator in up to an 8 × 8-dimensional two-qudit Hilbert space, the highest dimension to date for frequency bins. More generally, our employed Bayesian statistical model can be tailored to a variety of quantum systems with restricted measurement capabilities, forming an opportunistic tomographic framework that utilizes all available data in an optimal way.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2021

Optimal Protocols in Quantum Annealing and Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm Problems

Quantum annealing (QA) and the quantum approximate optimization algorithm (QAOA) are two special cases of the following control problem: apply a combination of two Hamiltonians to minimize the energy of a quantum state. Which is more effective has remained unclear. Here we analytically apply the framework of optimal control theory to show that generically, given a fixed amount of time, the optimal procedure has the pulsed (or “bang-bang”) structure of QAOA at the beginning and end but can have a smooth annealing structure in between. This is in contrast to previous works which have suggested that bang-bang (i.e., QAOA) protocols are ideal. To support this theoretical work, we carry out simulations of various transverse field Ising models, demonstrating that bang-anneal-bang protocols are more common. Futher, the general features identified here provide guideposts for the nascent experimental implementations of quantum optimization algorithms.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Design & Assembly of Atomically-Precise Quantum Materials & Devices (Final Report)

Atomic-layer honeycomb materials (Xene, where “X” may stand for a number of different elements) are a promising platform for new quantum states. When X is a heavier element such as tin (Sn) or bismuth (Bi), the edges of the honeycomb may conduct electron charge or spin without resistance - an effect that could persist up to room temperature in some cases. The type of edge states, and their robustness at room temperature, depend sensitively on (a) the substrate material that the Xene is sitting on; (b) out-of-plane buckling of the honeycomb structure; (c) the pattern of atoms or molecules sitting atop the honeycomb. This sensitivity suggests that Xene edge states could be tuned and rearranged to construct nanoscale electronic or spintronic devices. We report on theoretical progress in modeling the assembly and structure of Xenes, and their underlying substrates and overlaying atoms. Specifically, we model the stability of Sn atoms forming a single atomic layer (“stanene”), the stability and phase transitions

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Realization of two-sublattice exchange physics in the triangular lattice compound Ba 3 Er(BO 3 ) 3

Geometric frustration commonly occurs in materials where magnetic rare-earth ions are arranged on a two-dimensional triangular lattice. These compounds have been gaining significant attention lately, as they hold the promise of revealing unique quantum states of matter. However, little attention has been devoted to cases where spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ rare-earth ions are substituted with ions exhibiting higher spin multiplicities. Here, we successfully synthesize high-quality single crystal samples of Ba 3 Er(BO 3 ) 3 , which is part of the family of triangular lattice compounds. In our experiments, conducted at extremely low temperatures (around 100 millikelvin), we observe two sublattice exchange interactions in Ba 3 Er(BO 3 ) 3 , resulting in the hexagonal lattice spins exhibiting a mixture of ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic tendencies. Our theoretical analysis suggest that this behavior may be attributed to the distinct positions of magnetic ions within the crystal lattice. However, the presence of quantum effects adds an extra layer of complexity to our findings, calling for further exploration.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Quantum computing for fusion energy science applications

This is a review of recent research exploring and extending present-day quantum computing capabilities for fusion energy science applications. We begin with a brief tutorial on both ideal and open quantum dynamics, universal quantum computation, and quantum algorithms. Then, we explore the topic of using quantum computers to simulate both linear and nonlinear dynamics in greater detail. Because quantum computers can only efficiently perform linear operations on the quantum state, it is challenging to perform nonlinear operations that are generically required to describe the nonlinear differential equations of interest. In this work, we extend previous results on embedding nonlinear systems within linear systems by explicitly deriving the connection between the Koopman evolution operator, the Perron–Frobenius evolution operator, and the Koopman–von Neumann evolution (KvN) operator. We also explicitly derive the connection between the Koopman and Carleman approaches to embedding. Extension of the KvN framework to the complex-analytic setting relevant to Carleman embedding, and the proof that different choices of complex analytic reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces depend on the choice of Hilbert space metric are covered in the appendixes. Finally, we conclude with a review of recent quantum hardware implementations of algorithms on present-day quantum hardware platforms that may one day be accelerated through Hamiltonian simulation. We discuss the simulation of toy models of wave–particle interactions through the simulation of quantum maps and of wave–wave interactions important in nonlinear plasma dynamics.

Joseph, I. (ORCID:0000000255400840)↗
DOE OSTI2022

Data-centric machine learning in quantum information science

Abstract We propose a series of data-centric heuristics for improving the performance of machine learning systems when applied to problems in quantum information science. In particular, we consider how systematic engineering of training sets can significantly enhance the accuracy of pre-trained neural networks used for quantum state reconstruction without altering the underlying architecture. We find that it is not always optimal to engineer training sets to exactly match the expected distribution of a target scenario, and instead, performance can be further improved by biasing the training set to be slightly more mixed than the target. This is due to the heterogeneity in the number of free variables required to describe states of different purity, and as a result, overall accuracy of the network improves when training sets of a fixed size focus on states with the least constrained free variables. For further clarity, we also include a ‘toy model’ demonstration of how spurious correlations can inadvertently enter synthetic data sets used for training, how the performance of systems trained with these correlations can degrade dramatically, and how the inclusion of even relatively few counterexamples can effectively remedy such problems.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2021

Computable and Operationally Meaningful Multipartite Entanglement Measures

Multipartite entanglement is an essential resource for quantum communication, quantum computing, quantum sensing, and quantum networks. The utility of a quantum state |ψ$\rangle$ for these applications is often directly related to the degree or type of entanglement present in |ψ$\rangle$. Therefore, efficiently quantifying and characterizing multipartite entanglement is of paramount importance. Here, in this work, we introduce a family of multipartite entanglement measures, called concentratable entanglements. Several well-known entanglement measures are recovered as special cases of our family of measures, and hence we provide a general framework for quantifying multipartite entanglement. We prove that the entire family does not increase, on average, under local operations and classical communications. We also provide an operational meaning for these measures in terms of probabilistic concentration of entanglement into Bell pairs. Finally, we show that these quantities can be efficiently estimated on a quantum computer by implementing a parallelized SWAP test, opening up a research direction for measuring multipartite entanglement on quantum devices.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2021

Electrically controlled emission from singlet and triplet exciton species in atomically thin light-emitting diodes

We report electrically tunable spin singlet and triplet exciton emission from atomically aligned transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) heterostructures. Furthermore, the observation of these states in both 0° and 60° heterostructures provides the stacking orientation degree of freedom for polarization switching in interlayer excitons. We confirm the spin configurations of the light-emitting excitons employing magnetic fields to measure effective exciton g factors. The interlayer tunneling current across the TMD heterostructure enables the electrical generation of singlet and triplet exciton emission in this atomically thin p-n junction. We demonstrate tunability between the singlet and triplet exciton photoluminescence via electrostatic gates and excitation power. By tuning the gates and interlayer bias voltage, the electroluminescence of the singlet and triplet can be switched with ratios of 10:1. Atomically thin TMD heterostructure light-emitting diodes thus enable a route for optoelectronic devices that can configure spin and valley quantum states independently.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1991

Cometary implications of the internal energy distributions of the C2 and C3 radicals produced in the photolysis of the C2H and C3H2

The C2 and C3 radicals are prominent emission in the visible region of cometary spectra. Observational evidence exists that suggests these radicals are formed as granddaughter fragments in the photolysis of more stable molecules. Likely candidates for these parent molecules ar C2H2, C3H4 (allene), and CH3C2H (propyne). Recent laboratory studies were performed on all of these parent molecules and they indicate that they can indeed produce the observed cometary radicals. In the case of C2H2, the laboratory evidence suggest that C2 is formed via the following mechanisms: (1) C2H2 + photon(193 nm) yields C2H + H; and (2) C2H + photon(193 nm) yields C2 + H. Evidence is presented to show that the C2 radical produced in the second reaction occurs in a variety of electronic, vibrational, and rotational states. It is argued that this is a result of conical intersections in the potential energy curves and the density of states associated with these curves. Since this is a property of the C2H radical similar initial product state distributions are expected to occur in comets. This means that any models of the C2 emission may have to start off with rotationally excited C2 radicals in both the singlet and the triplet manifolds. When C3H4 (allene) and CH3C2H (propyne) were photolyzed, the C3 radical is formed. In the allene case, laboratory evidence shows that the C3 radical is formed via the following mechanism: (1) C3H4 + photon(193 nm) yields C3H2 + H2; and (2) C3H2 + photon(193 nm) yields C3 + H2. More C3 is formed in the case of allene than in the propyne case, even though the absorption cross section for propyne is a factor of 2 larger. This suggests that competing dissociation pathways are present during the photolysis of propyne that are not available to allene. The observed quantum state distributions of the C3 product were the same for both parent molecules, indicating that the same intermediate state is involved. These observations can be understood if the excited propyne formed in the initial absorption step isomerizes to excited allene before it dissociates to the same daughter compound. This postulate was tested by comparing RRKM calculations of the isomerization rate of excited propyne versus the decomposition rate to other products.

Jackson, William M.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Magnetometer Based on Optoelectronic Microwave Oscillator

proposed instrument, intended mainly for use as a magnetometer, would include an optoelectronic oscillator (OEO) stabilized by an atomic cell that could play the role of a magnetically tunable microwave filter. The microwave frequency would vary with the magnetic field in the cell, thereby providing an indication of the magnetic field. The proposed magnetometer would offer a combination of high accuracy and high sensitivity, characterized by flux densities of less than a picotesla. In comparison with prior magnetometers, the proposed magnetometer could, in principle, be constructed as a compact, lightweight instrument: It could fit into a package of about 10 by 10 by 10 cm and would have a mass <0.5 kg. As described in several prior NASA Tech Briefs articles, an OEO is a hybrid of photonic and electronic components that generates highly spectrally pure microwave radiation, and optical radiation modulated by the microwave radiation, through direct conversion between laser light and microwave radiation in an optoelectronic feedback loop. As used here, "atomic cell" signifies a cell containing a vapor, the constituent atoms of which can be made to undergo transitions between quantum states, denoted hyperfine levels, when excited by light in a suitable wavelength range. The laser light must be in this range. The energy difference between the hyperfine levels defines the microwave frequency. In the proposed instrument (see figure), light from a laser would be introduced into an electro-optical modulator (EOM). Amplitude-modulated light from the exit port of the EOM would pass through a fiber-optic splitter having two output branches. The light in one branch would be sent through an atomic cell to a photodiode. The light in the other branch would constitute the microwave-modulated optical output. Part of the light leaving the atomic cell could also be used to stabilize the laser at a frequency in the vicinity of the desired hyperfine or other quantum transition. The microwave signal from the output of the photodiode would be amplified (if necessary, as explained below) and fed back into the EOM. This system would oscillate if the amplification in the closed loop exceeded the linear absorption of the loop. The microwave amplifier may be unnecessary to sustain stable oscillations, depending on the power of the laser radiation at the photodetector and on particular features of the modulator and optical delay line.

Maleki, Lute↗
DOE OSTI2023

Electrical Manipulation of Quantum Coherence in a Two-Level Molecular System

We report the manipulation of ultrafast quantum coherence of a two-level single hydrogen molecular system by employing static electric field from the sample bias in a femtosecond terahertz scanning tunneling microscope. A H 2 molecule adsorbed on the polar Cu 2⁢ N surface develops an electric dipole and exhibits a giant Stark effect. An avoided crossing of the quantum state energy levels is derived from the resonant frequency of the single H 2 two levels in a double-well potential. The dephasing time of the initial wave packet can also be changed by applying the electric field. The electrical manipulation for different tunneling gaps in three dimensions allows quantification of the surface electrostatic fields at the atomic scale. Further, our work demonstrated the potential application of molecules as controllable two-level molecular systems.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Revealing intrinsic domains and fluctuations of moiré magnetism by a wide-field quantum microscope

Moiré magnetism featured by stacking engineered atomic registry and lattice interactions has recently emerged as an appealing quantum state of matter at the forefront of condensed matter physics research. Nanoscale imaging of moiré magnets is highly desirable and serves as a prerequisite to investigate a broad range of intriguing physics underlying the interplay between topology, electronic correlations, and unconventional nanomagnetism. Here we report spin defect-based wide-field imaging of magnetic domains and spin fluctuations in twisted double trilayer (tDT) chromium triiodide CrI 3 . We explicitly show that intrinsic moiré domains of opposite magnetizations appear over arrays of moiré supercells in low-twist-angle tDT CrI 3 . In contrast, spin fluctuations measured in tDT CrI 3 manifest little spatial variations on the same mesoscopic length scale due to the dominant driving force of intralayer exchange interaction. Our results enrich the current understanding of exotic magnetic phases sustained by moiré magnetism and highlight the opportunities provided by quantum spin sensors in probing microscopic spin related phenomena on two-dimensional flatland.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
NASA NTRS2009

Nanowire Electron Scattering Spectroscopy

Nanowire electron scattering spectroscopy (NESS) has been proposed as the basis of a class of ultra-small, ultralow-power sensors that could be used to detect and identify chemical compounds present in extremely small quantities. State-of-the-art nanowire chemical sensors have already been demonstrated to be capable of detecting a variety of compounds in femtomolar quantities. However, to date, chemically specific sensing of molecules using these sensors has required the use of chemically functionalized nanowires with receptors tailored to individual molecules of interest. While potentially effective, this functionalization requires labor-intensive treatment of many nanowires to sense a broad spectrum of molecules. In contrast, NESS would eliminate the need for chemical functionalization of nanowires and would enable the use of the same sensor to detect and identify multiple compounds. NESS is analogous to Raman spectroscopy, the main difference being that in NESS, one would utilize inelastic scattering of electrons instead of photons to determine molecular vibrational energy levels. More specifically, in NESS, one would exploit inelastic scattering of electrons by low-lying vibrational quantum states of molecules attached to a nanowire or nanotube.

Hunt, Brian↗
DOE OSTI2022

Boosting engine performance with Bose–Einstein condensation

Abstract At low-temperatures a gas of bosons will undergo a phase transition into a quantum state of matter known as a Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC), in which a large fraction of the particles will occupy the ground state simultaneously. Here we explore the performance of an endoreversible Otto cycle operating with a harmonically confined Bose gas as the working medium. We analyze the engine operation in three regimes, with the working medium in the BEC phase, in the gas phase, and driven across the BEC transition during each cycle. We find that the unique properties of the BEC phase allow for enhanced engine performance, including increased power output and higher efficiency at maximum power.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Entanglement transitions from restricted Boltzmann machines

The search for novel entangled phases of matter has lead to the recent discovery of a new class of “en- tanglement transitions,” exemplified by random tensor networks and monitored quantum circuits. Most known examples can be understood as some classical ordering transitions in an underlying statistical mechanics model, where entanglement maps onto the free-energy cost of inserting a domain wall. In this paper we study the possibility of entanglement transitions driven by physics beyond such statistical mechanics mappings. Motivated by recent applications of neural-network-inspired variational Ansätze, we investigate under what conditions on the variational parameters these Ansätze can capture an entanglement transition. We study the entanglement scaling of short-range restricted Boltzmann machine (RBM) quantum states with random phases. For uncorrelated random phases, we analytically demonstrate the absence of an entanglement transition and reveal subtle finite-size effects in finite-size numerical simulations. Introducing phases with correlations decaying as 1/r α in real space, we observe three regions with a different scaling of entanglement entropy depending on the exponent α. We study the nature of the transition between these regions, finding numerical evidence for critical behavior. Furthermore, our work establishes the presence of long-range correlated phases in RBM-based wave functions as a required ingredient for entanglement transitions.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

Measurement-induced purification in large- N hybrid Brownian circuits

Competition between unitary dynamics that scrambles quantum information nonlocally and local measurements that probe and collapse the quantum state can result in a measurement-induced entanglement phase transition. Here we study this phenomenon in an analytically tractable all-to-all Brownian hybrid circuit model composed of qubits. The system is initially entangled with an equal sized reference, and the subsequent hybrid system dynamics either partially preserves or totally destroys this entanglement depending on the measurement rate. Our approach can access a variety of entropic observables which are distinguished by the averaging procedure, and for concreteness we focus on a particular purity quantity for which the averaging is particularly simple. We represent the purity as a path integral coupling four replicas with twisted boundary conditions. Saddle-point analysis reveals a second-order phase transition corresponding to replica permutation symmetry breaking below a critical measurement rate. The transition is mean-field-like and we characterize the critical properties near the transition in terms of a simple Ising field theory in 0 + 1 dimensions. In addition to studying the purity of the entire system, we study subsystem purities and relate these results to manifestations of quantum error correction in the model. Here, we also comment on the experimental feasibility for simulating this averaged purity, and corroborate our results with exact diagonalization for modest system sizes.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗