Energy News  
CHIP TECH
A new platform for customizable quantum devices
by Staff Writers
Lemont IL (SPX) Feb 25, 2022

stock illustration only

A ground-up approach to qubit design leads to a new framework for creating versatile, highly tailored quantum devices. Advances in quantum science have the potential to revolutionize the way we live. Quantum computers hold promise for solving problems that are intractable today, and we may one day use quantum networks as hackerproof information highways.

The realization of such forward-looking technologies hinges in large part on the qubit - the fundamental component of quantum systems. A major challenge of qubit research is designing them to be customizable, tailored to work with all kinds of sensing, communication and computational devices.

Scientists have taken a major step in the development of tailored qubits. In a paper published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the team, which includes researchers at MIT, the University of Chicago and Columbia University, demonstrates how a particular molecular family of qubits can be finely tuned over a broad spectrum, like turning a sensitive dial on a wideband radio.

The team also outlines the underlying design features that enable exquisite control over these quantum bits.

"This is a new platform for qubit design. We can use our predictable, controllable, tunable design strategy to create a new quantum system," said Danna Freedman, MIT professor of chemistry and a co-author of the study. ?"We've demonstrated the broad range of tunability over which these design principles work."

The work is partially supported by Q-NEXT, a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Quantum Information Science Research Center led by Argonne National Laboratory.

The researchers' work focuses on a specific group of molecules: those with a central chromium atom surrounded by four hydrocarbon molecules to form a pyramidlike structure.

The molecular qubit advantage
The qubit is the quantum equivalent of the traditional computing bit. Physically, it may take any of several forms, such as a specially prepared atom inside a crystal or an electrical circuit. It can also be a lab-made molecule.

One advantage of a molecular qubit is that, like a tiny 3D-printed gadget, it can be engineered from the bottom up, giving the scientist freedom to tune the qubit for different functions.

"We're working to change the atomic structure through synthetic chemistry and then learning how those changes modify the physics of the qubit," said Leah Weiss, a University of Chicago postdoctoral researcher and study co-author.

A molecular qubit's information is stored in its spin, a property of atomic-level materials. Scientists engineer the spin by adjusting - tuning - the arrangement of the molecule's electrons, its electronic structure. The information enters the qubit as particles of light, or photons, and is encoded in the qubit's spin. The spin-encoded information is then translated again into photons, to be read out.

Different photon wavelengths are more suitable for different applications. One wavelength may work better for biosensing applications, another for quantum communication.

The ligand's the thing
One of the molecular qubit's key tuning dials is the ligand field strength, the strength of the bonds connecting the central metal atom to the surrounding hydrocarbons.

"The ligand is fundamentally everything. We can intentionally control the way in which the ligand environment influences the spin and rationally control where the emitted photons end up," said Dan Laorenza, MIT graduate student and lead author of the paper.

Researchers demonstrated that they could exercise remarkably fine tuning over these bonds. Not only that, but they also showed that the ligand field strengths are adjustable over a relatively broad spectrum, while computational simulations performed by researchers at Columbia provided quantum mechanical insight into the ligands' role in controlling the molecule's electronic properties.

The light emitted by their chromium qubits spanned an impressive 100 nanometers.

"This is an unprecedented range of tunability for qubits targeting designer applications," Freedman said.

"Just by keeping the central metal ion the same, which is doing the hard work of the quantum information processing, but tuning the surrounding environment through ligands, you can play around with the properties," said University of Glasgow's Sam Bayliss, who co-authored the study while a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Chicago. ?"That's very hard to do with other systems, like solid-state systems, where you're essentially fixed at whatever the elemental properties give you."

A solid-state qubit is created by scooping out a tiny, atom-sized bit of matter from a crystal, and the resulting vacancy is where quantum information is stored and processed. While they have their advantages, solid-state qubits can't be tuned with the same chemical precision, for example.

"With those, effectively, you get no tuning," Freedman said. ?"You're really going from zero to 100 there."

Laying out the design rules
Approaching the molecule's design by focusing on its electronic structure - the molecule's energy levels - rather than its physical structure was key to the team's discovery.

"Throwing the physical structure out the window and focusing entirely on the electronic structure, which is something that can be achieved across a range of molecular platforms, is really the key innovative detail," Freedman said.

The researchers spell out the design criteria for building similar molecules in their paper, laying the groundwork for creating new tunable molecular qubits that can be designed toward a future application.

"Having demonstrated the accuracy of our computational methods on these chromium qubits, we can now use the same methods to simplify the screening process," said Arailym Kairalapova, one of the Columbia researchers who performed the calculations.

"By bringing together the tools of chemistry and physics, it's possible to start to understand the design rules that will guide the continued improvement of this class of qubits," Weiss said.

One could custom-design qubits that attach to a biological system and use them for quantum biosensing. Or researchers could architect a qubit to be water-soluble so that it could detect signals in an aqueous environment.

"One of the terrific things about this platform is that, if the molecule doesn't emit at a certain wavelength, it's easy for us to go back in the lab, make a new material at a low cost, and see which one gives us the appropriate feature we want," Laorenza said. ?"We can do this in a few days. It's not something that takes a really intense, high amount of fabrication."

The team attributes its success also to innovations in studies of light-matter interactions.

"A few years ago, this was just a dream - to have a set of molecular systems be a novel platform for quantum information science," Bayliss said. ?"Seeing where we are now is really exciting."

The team plans to explore different ligand environments to widen the range of photon emission.

"This is now a jumping off point that we hope allows many more chemists to be invited into this space, opening up the work to a much broader range of chemists who could contribute quite a bit to quantum information science," Laorenza said.

This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science National Quantum Information Science Research Centers.


Related Links
Argonne National Laboratory
Q-NEXT
Computer Chip Architecture, Technology and Manufacture
Nano Technology News From SpaceMart.com


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


CHIP TECH
Perovskites used to make efficient artificial retina
Thuwal, Saudi Arabia (SPX) Feb 24, 2022
An artificial electronic retina that can "see" in a similar way to the human vision system and can recognize handwritten digits has been built by KAUST researchers as they seek to develop better options for computer vision applications. Mani Teja Vijjapu, an electrical engineering Ph.D. student, Khaled Nabil Salama and coworkers have designed and fabricated an array of photoreceptors that detect the intensity of visible light via a change in electrical capacitance, mimicking the behavior of the ey ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

CHIP TECH
Australia's largest power firm rejects green takeover bid

Maine policymakers make bold push for publicly owned power

Paris starts building 'Triangle' tower despite green opposition

Vietnam arrests green activist on tax charges

CHIP TECH
Metasurface-based antenna turns ambient radio waves into electric power

Biodegradable alternative could replace lithium-ion

Tuning in to invisible waves on the JET tokamak

New power sources

CHIP TECH
US offshore wind power lease sale nets record $4.3 bn

More than $1.5 bn bid so far in US offshore wind auction

Offshore wind farms reshape the North Sea

Turbine 'torture' for Greek islanders as wind farms proliferate

CHIP TECH
"Workhorse" of photovoltaics combined with perovskite in tandem for the first time

Perovskite Solar Modules with a marble look

Increasing efficiency in two-terminal tandem solar cells

Solar-powered system offers a route to inexpensive desalination

CHIP TECH
UN watchdog concerned over Ukraine nuclear power plant

Finland to re-evaluate Russian Rosatom nuclear reactor project over crisis in Ukraine: PM

French state to pony up billions for cash-strapped EDF

Nuclear power may be the key to least-cost, zero-emission electricity systems

CHIP TECH
New, nature-inspired concepts for turning CO2 into clean fuels

Basis for next-gen bioprocesses

Scientists use "green" solvent and natural pigment to produce bioplastic

At bioenergy crossroads, should corn ethanol be left in the rearview mirror?

CHIP TECH
WTI surges more than 6%, Brent more than 5% on Ukraine invasion

TotalEnergies makes 'significant' oil discovery off Namibia

Australian energy firms challenge excess emissions claim

Not so SWIFT: EU energy concerns spark Russia sanctions rift

CHIP TECH
US Supreme Court hears climate case as UN issues stark warning

Russian official apologises for war in Ukraine at UN climate meet

Potential widespread effects of geoengineering on both climate and the carbon cycle

Horn of Africa drought drives 13 million to hunger









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.