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At least 1,009 records · Page 56

Third- and fourth-order virial coefficients of harmonically trapped fermions in a semiclassical approximation

Using a leading-order semiclassical approximation, we calculate the third- and fourth-order virial coefficients of nonrelativistic spin-1/2 fermions in a harmonic trapping potential in arbitrary spatial dimensions, and as functions of temperature, trapping frequency, and coupling strength. In this work, our simple, analytic results for the interaction-induced changes Δb 3 and Δb 4 agree qualitatively, and in some regimes quantitatively, with previous numerical calculations for the unitary limit of three-dimensional Fermi gases.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

Equilibration of the planar modes of ultracold two-dimensional ion crystals in a Penning trap

In this work, planar thermal equilibration is studied using direct numerical simulations of ultracold two-dimensional ion crystals in a Penning trap with a rotating wall. The large magnetic field of the trap splits the modes that describe in-plane motion of the ions into two branches: high-frequency cyclotron modes dominated by kinetic energy and low-frequency E × B modes dominated by potential energy associated with thermal position displacements. Using an eigenmode analysis we extract the equilibration rate between these two branches as a function of the ratio of the frequencies that characterize the two branches and observe this equilibration rate to be exponentially suppressed as the ratio increases. Under experimental conditions relevant for current work at NIST, the predicted equilibration time is orders of magnitude longer than any relevant experimental timescales. We also study the coupling rate dependence on the initial energy of the planar modes and the number of ions. In addition, we show how increasing the rotating wall strength improves crystal stability. These details of in-plane mode dynamics help set the stage for developing strategies to efficiently cool the in-plane modes and improve the performance of single plane ion crystals for quantum information processing.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Error mitigation, optimization, and extrapolation on a trapped-ion testbed

Current noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) trapped-ion devices are subject to errors which can significantly impact the accuracy of calculations if left unchecked. A form of error mitigation called zero noise extrapolation (ZNE) can decrease an algorithm’s sensitivity to these errors without increasing the number of required qubits. Here we explore different methods for integrating this error mitigation technique into the Variational Quantum Eigensolver (VQE) algorithm for calculating the ground state of the HeH + molecule at 0.8 Å in the presence of experimental noise. Using the Quantum Scientific Computing Open User Testbed (QSCOUT) trapped-ion device, we test three methods of scaling noise for extrapolation: time stretching the two-qubit gates, scaling the sideband detuning parameter, and inserting two-qubit gate identity operations into the ansatz circuit. We find that time stretching and sideband detuning scaling fail to scale the noise on our particular hardware in a way that can be extrapolated to zero noise. Scaling our noise with global gate identity insertions and extrapolating after variational optimization, we achieve error suppression of 96.8%, resulting in an energy estimate within –0.004 ± 0.04 hartree of the ground state energy. This is an improvement, but still outside the chemical accuracy threshold of 0.0016 hartree. Furthermore, our results show that the efficacy of this error mitigation technique depends on choosing the correct implementation for a given device architecture.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Spectral and dynamical analysis of a single vortex ring in anisotropic harmonically trapped three-dimensional Bose-Einstein condensates

Here in the present work, motivated by numerous recent experimental developments we revisit the dynamics of a single vortex ring in anisotropic harmonic traps. At the theoretical level, we start from a general Lagrangian dynamically capturing the evolution of a vortex ring and not only consider its spectrum of linearized excitations, but also explore the full nonlinear dynamical evolution of the ring as a vortical filament. The theory predicts that the ring is stable for 1 ≤ λ ≤ 2, where λ = ω z /ω r is the ratio of the trapping frequencies along the z and r axes, i.e., for spherical to slightly oblate condensates. We compare this prediction with direct numerical simulations of the full three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation (GPE) capturing the linearization spectrum of the ring for different values of the chemical potential and as a function of the anisotropy parameter λ . We identify this result as being only asymptotically valid as the chemical potential μ → ∞, revealing how the stability interval narrows and, in particular, its upper bound decreases for finite μ. Finally, we compare at the dynamical level the results of the GPE with the ones effectively capturing the ring dynamics, revealing the unstable evolution for different values of λ, as well as the good agreement between the two.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

Dipolar quantum logic for freely rotating trapped molecular ions

We consider the practical feasibility of using the direct, electric dipole-dipole interaction between cotrapped molecular ions for robust quantum logic without the need for static polarizing fields. Here, the use of oscillating dipole moments, as opposed to static electric dipoles, dynamically decouples the dipoles from laboratory fields, including the electric fields of the trap itself. Further, this implementation does not require the quantum control of motion, potentially removing a major roadblock to ion trap quantum computing scalability. Since the polarizing field is electromagnetic radiation, even pairs of states with splittings in the THz regime can be fully polarized.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Quasistable quantum vortex knots and links in anisotropic harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensates

The long-time existence of topologically nontrivial configurations of quantum vortices in the form of torus knots and links in trapped Bose-Einstein condensates is demonstrated numerically within the three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation with an external anisotropic parabolic potential. We identify here parametric domains of trap anisotropy, characterized by the axial over planar frequency ratio ${\lambda}{\approx}1.5-1.6$, where the lifetime of such quasistationary rotating vortex structures is many hundreds of typical rotation times. This suggests the potential experimental observability of the structures. We quantify the relevant lifetimes as a function of the model parameters (e.g., ${\lambda}$) and initial condition parameters of the knot profile.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Effect of optically induced potential on the energy of trapped exciton polaritons below the condensation threshold

Exciton-polaritons (polaritons herein) offer a unique nonlinear platform for studies of collective macroscopic quantum phenomena in a solid-state system. Shaping of polariton flow and polariton confinement via potential landscapes created by nonresonant optical pumping has gained considerable attention due to the flexibility and control enabled by optically induced potentials. Recently, large density-dependent energy shifts (blueshifts) exhibited by optically trapped polaritons at low densities, below the bosonic condensation threshold, were interpreted as an evidence of strong polariton-polariton interactions [Y. Sun et al., Nat. Phys. 13, 870 (2017)]. In this work, we further investigate the origins of these blueshifts in optically induced circular traps and present evidence of significant blueshifts of the polariton energy due to reshaping of the optically induced potential with laser pump power. Our work demonstrates the strong influence of the effective potential formed by an optically injected excitonic reservoir on the energy blueshifts observed below and up to the polariton condensation threshold and suggests that the observed blueshifts arise due to interaction of polaritons with the excitonic reservoir, rather than due to polariton-polariton interaction.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

$β$-delayed-neutron studies of 135,136 Sb and 140 I performed with trapped ions

In this work, Beta-delayed-neutron $(βn)$ spectroscopy was performed using the Beta-decay Paul Trap and an array of radiation detectors. The $βn$ branching ratios and energy spectra for 135,136 Sb and 140 I were obtained by measuring the time of flight of recoil ions emerging from the trapped ion cloud. These nuclei are located at the edge of an isotopic region identified as having $βn$ branching ratios that impact the $r$-process abundance pattern around the A ≈ 130 peak. For 135,136 Sb and 140 I, $βn$ branching ratios of 14.6(13)%, 17.6(29)%, and 7.6(28)% were determined, respectively. The $βn$ energy spectra obtained for 135 Sb and 140 I are compared with results from direct neutron measurements, and the $βn$ energy spectrum for 136 Sb has been measured for the first time.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Fill and dump measurement of the neutron lifetime using an asymmetric magneto-gravitational trap

The past two decades have yielded several new measurements and reanalysis of older measurements of the neutron lifetime. These have led to a 4.4 standard deviation discrepancy between the most precise measurements of the neutron decay rate producing protons in cold neutron beams and the most precise lifetime measured in neutron storage experiments. Measurements using different techniques are important for investigating whether there are unidentified systematic effects in any of the measurements. In this paper we report a new measurement using the Los Alamos asymmetric magneto-gravitational trap where the surviving neutrons are counted external to the trap using the fill and dump method. In this work, the new measurement gives a free neutron lifetime of $τ_n$ = 876.3(2.4) stat (0.8) syst . Although this measurement is not as precise, it is in statistical agreement with previous results using in situ counting in the same apparatus.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Bulk viscosity of nuclear matter with pions in the neutrino-trapped regime

Recent work has shown that a population of thermal pions could modify the equation of state and transport properties of hot and dense neutron-rich matter and introduce new reaction pathways to change the proton fraction. In this article we study their impact on the bulk viscosity of dense matter, focusing on the neutrino-trapped regime that would be realized in neutron star mergers and supernovae. We find that the presence of a thermal population of pions alters the bulk viscosity by modifying the EoS (via the susceptibilities) and by providing new reaction pathways to achieve beta equilibrium. In neutron star merger conditions, the bulk viscosity in neutrino-trapped npeμ matter (without pions) has its peak at temperatures of at most a couple MeV and is quite small at temperatures of tens of MeV. We find that thermal pions enhance the low-temperature peak of the bulk viscosity by a factor of a few and shift it to slightly lower temperatures. At higher temperatures, where the pion abundance is large but the bulk viscosity is traditionally small, pions can increase the bulk viscosity by an order of magnitude or more, although it is still orders of magnitude smaller than its peak value.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Measuring the impact ionization and charge trapping probabilities in SuperCDMS HVeV phonon sensing detectors

A 0.93 g 1×1×0.4 cm 3 SuperCDMS silicon HVeV detector operated at 30 mK was illuminated by 1.91 eV photons using a room temperature pulsed laser coupled to the cryostat via fiber optic. In this work, the detector’s response under a variety of specific operating conditions was used to study the detector leakage current, charge trapping, and impact ionization in the high-purity Si substrate. The measured probabilities for a charge carrier in the detector to undergo charge trapping (0.713±0.093%) or cause impact ionization (1.576±0.110%) were found to be nearly independent of bias polarity and charge-carrier type (electron or hole) for substrate biases of ±140 V.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Quantum Dynamics of H 2 Trapped within Organic Clathrate Cages

The rotational and translational dynamics of molecular hydrogen trapped within β-hydroquinone clathrate (H 2 @β-HQ)—a practical example of a quantum particle trapped within an anisotropic confining potential—were investigated using inelastic neutron scattering and Raman spectroscopy. High-resolution vibrational spectra, including those collected from the VISION spectrometer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, indicate relatively strong attractive interaction between guest and host with a strikingly large splitting of rotational energy levels compared with similar guest-host systems. Unlike related molecular systems in which confined H 2 exhibits nearly free rotation, the behavior of H 2 @β-HQ is explained using a two-dimensional (2D) hindered rotor model with barrier height more than 2 times the rotational constant (-16.2 meV).

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Trapped Particle Effects in the Parametric Instability of Near-Acoustic Plasma Waves

Quantitative experiments on the parametric decay instability of near-acoustic plasma waves provide strong evidence that trapped particles reduce the instability threshold below fluid models. At low temperatures, the broad characteristics of the parametric instability are determined by the frequency detuning of the pump and daughter wave, and the wave-wave coupling strength, surprisingly consistent with cold fluid, three-wave theories. Furthermore, at higher temperatures, trapped particle effects dominate, and the pump wave becomes unstable at half the threshold pump wave amplitude with similar exponential growth rates as for a cold plasma.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Trapped-Ion Spin-Motion Coupling with Microwaves and a Near-Motional Oscillating Magnetic Field Gradient

Here, we introduce a new method of spin-motion coupling for trapped ions using microwaves and a magnetic field gradient oscillating close to the ions’ motional frequency. We demonstrate and characterize this coupling experimentally using a single ion in a surface-electrode trap that incorporates current-carrying electrodes to generate the microwave field and the oscillating magnetic field gradient. Using this technique, we perform resolved-sideband cooling of a single motional mode to its ground state.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Efficient Ground-State Cooling of Large Trapped-Ion Chains with an Electromagnetically-Induced-Transparency Tripod Scheme

Here, we report the electromagnetically-induced-transparency (EIT) cooling of a large trapped 171 Yb + ion chain to the quantum ground state. Unlike conventional EIT cooling, we engage a four-level tripod structure and achieve fast sub-Doppler cooling over all motional modes. We observe simultaneous ground-state cooling across the complete transverse mode spectrum of up to 40 ions, occupying a bandwidth of over 3 MHz. The cooling time is observed to be less than 300 μ s , independent of the number of ions. Such efficient cooling across the entire spectrum is essential for high-fidelity quantum operations using trapped ion crystals for quantum simulators or quantum computers.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Trap-Assisted Auger-Meitner Recombination from First Principles

Trap-assisted nonradiative recombination is known to limit the efficiency of optoelectronic devices, but the conventional multiphonon emission (MPE) process fails to explain the observed loss in wide-band-gap materials. Here, we highlight the role of trap-assisted Auger-Meitner (TAAM) recombination and present a first-principles methodology to determine TAAM rates due to defects or impurities in semiconductors or insulators. We assess the impact on efficiency of light emitters in a recombination cycle that may include both TAAM and carrier capture via MPE. We apply the formalism to the technologically relevant case study of a calcium impurity in InGaN, where a Shockley-Read-Hall recombination cycle involving MPE alone cannot explain the experimentally observed nonradiative loss. We find that, for band gaps larger than 2.5 eV, the inclusion of TAAM results in recombination rates that are orders of magnitude larger than recombination rates based on MPE alone, demonstrating that TAAM can be a dominant nonradiative process in wide-band-gap materials. Furthermore, our computational formalism is general and can be applied to the calculation of TAAM rates in any semiconducting or insulating material.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Charge trapping at Al/Al 2 ⁢O 3 interface facilitates hydrogen-induced superabundant metal vacancy formation

Hydrogen is a ubiquitous impurity that deteriorates the metal/oxide interface, causing challenges such as current leakage and blistering. Here, in this work, we uncover the mechanisms behind hydrogen-induced damage at the prototypical Al/A⁢l 2 ⁢O 3 interface. The precursor that we identify is charge trapping at the interface, which facilitates hydrogen segregation to the interface plane as H – . Presence of hydrogen increases aluminum vacancy concentration at the interfacial metal and oxide planes. Each Al vacancy can trap multiple hydrogen atoms. As a result, the interfacial aluminum vacancy and hydrogen concentrations increase by orders of magnitude. Additionally, hydrogen behaves as an n-type dopant and increases electronic conductivity at the oxide layer adjacent to the interface by forming H + , and the [V Al –H] complex is the predominant defect at this layer. These findings provide the precursor mechanisms of hydrogen-induced damage at the metal-oxide interfaces and have implications for advancing Al/A⁢l 2 ⁢O 3 –based coatings and electronic devices.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

In situ midcircuit qubit measurement and reset in a single-species trapped-ion quantum computing system

We implement in situ midcircuit measurement and reset (MCMR) operations on a full-scale trapped-ion quantum computing system by using metastable qubit states in 171 Yb + ions. We compare two methods for isolating data qubits from measured qubits: one shelves the data qubits into the metastable state and the other drives the measured qubit to the metastable state without disturbing the other qubits. We experimentally demonstrate both methods on a crystal of two 171 Yb + ions using both the 𝑆 1/2 ground-state hyperfine clock qubit and the 𝑆 1/2 −𝐷 3/2 optical qubit. These MCMR methods result in errors on the data qubit of about 2% without degrading the measurement fidelity. With straightforward reductions in laser noise, these errors can be suppressed to less than 0.1%. The demonstrated methods allow MCMR to be performed in a single-species ion chain without shuttling or additional qubit-addressing optics, greatly simplifying the system architecture and allowing straightforward integration with existing trapped-ion quantum computers.

coherent control↗