原子冷却技术的发展

新的物理现象的发现往往得益于新实验技术的发明,制冷技术的进步推动了包括凝聚态物理学和原子物理学等现代科学多个领域的重要发现,并促进了超导强磁铁、冷冻电镜等需要极低温度条件的新技术的发展.近年来,随着激光冷却技术的发明和不断发展,人们得以在极端低温下开展统计力学和量子力学相关的实验研究,迄今,人们已经实现了玻色-爱因斯坦...     

Review of cavity optomechanical cooling

Quantum manipulation of macroscopic mechanical systems is of great interest in both fundamental physics and ap- plications ranging from high-precision metrology to quantum information processing. For these purposes, a crucial step is to cool the mechanical system to its quantum ground state. In this review, we focus on the cavity optomechanical cooling, which exploits the cavity enhanced interaction between optical field and mechanical motion to reduce the thermal noise. Recent remarkable theoretical and experimental efforts in this field have taken a major step forward in preparing the mo- tional quantum ground state of mesoscopic mechanical systems. This review first describes the quantum theory of cavity optomechanical cooling, including quantum noise approach and covariance approach; then, the up-to-date experimental progresses are introduced. Finally, new cooling approaches are discussed along the directions of cooling in the strong coupling regime and cooling beyond the resolved sideband limit.     

Quantum nanoscience

In this article we discuss the physical principles behind new quantum devices and materials that require some form of nanoscale fabrication. The two systems we discuss are superconducting quantum circuits and nanomechanical resonators. Both systems involve many-body systems of a special kind in which particular collective degrees of freedom can be factored out of the microscopic dynamics and subject to quantum control. We discuss applications to precision metrology.     

Quantum control with Lyapunov function and bang–bang solution in the optomechanics system

We propose a quantum control scheme with the help of Lyapunov control function in the optomechanics system. The principle of the idea is to design suitable control fields to steer the Lyapunov control function to zero as t → ∞ while the quantum system is driven to the target state. Such an evolution makes no limit on the initial state and one needs not manipulate the laser pulses during the evolution. To prove the effectiveness of the scheme, we show two useful applications in the optomechanics system: one is the cooling of nanomechanical resonator and the other is the quantum fluctuation transfer between membranes. Numerical simulation demonstrates that the perfect and fast cooling of nanomechanical resonator and quantum fluctuation transfer between membranes can be rapidly achieved. Besides, some optimizations are made on the traditional Lyapunov control waveform and the optimized bang–bang control fields makes Lyapunov function V decrease faster. The optimized quantum control scheme can achieve the same goal with greater efficiency. Hence, we hope that this work may open a new avenue of the experimental realization of cooling mechanical oscillator, quantum fluctuations transfer between membranes and other quantum optomechanics tasks and become an alternative candidate for quantum manipulation of macroscopic mechanical devices in the near future.     

品质因子可调的石墨烯纳米机械振子

纳米机械振子尺寸小,质量轻,可以用来制作探测力、质量等微小物理量的超灵敏探测器.石墨烯拥有质量轻、密度低和杨氏模量高等特性,被认为是制作纳米机械振子的理想材料.石墨烯纳米机械振子因其具有的谐振频率高、品质因子高和谐振频率可调性高等优势,近年来得到了人们的广泛关注.作为表征纳米机械振子性能的一个重要指标,品质因子越高,意味着纳米机械振子耗散越低,纳米机械振子的灵敏度越高.本文通过微纳加工的工艺制备出一种谐振频率随栅压可调(调节的范围为73MHz~90MHz)的石墨烯纳米机械振子样品,研究其在极低温高真空环境下的品质因子与栅极电压之间的关系.实验表明通过栅压调节振子的内部应力,能够使石墨烯纳米机械振子品质因子从220提高到1000.我们的结果为二维材料纳米机械振子的耗散研究提供了一种新的研究思路.     

Suppression of Stokes heating processes and improved optomechanical cooling with frequency modulation

Ground-state cooling of mesoscopic mechanical objects is still a major challenge in the unresolved-sideband regime. We present a frequency modulation (FM) scheme to achieve cooling of the mechanical resonator to its ground-state in a double-cavity optomechanical system containing a mechanical resonator. The mean phonon number is determined by numerically solving a set of differential equations derived from the quantum master equations. Due to efficient suppression of Stokes heating processes in the presence of FM, the ground-state cooling, indicated by numerical calculations, is significantly achievable, regardless of whether in the resolved-sideband regime or the unresolved-sideband regime. Furthermore, by choosing parameters reasonably, the improvement of the quantum cooling limit is found to be capable of being positively correlated with the modulation frequency. This method provides new insight into quantum manipulation and creates more possibilities for applications of quantum devices.     

The parity operator in quantum optical metrology

Photon number states are assigned a parity of +1 if their photon number is even and a parity of ?1 if odd. The parity operator, which is minus one to the power of the photon number operator, is a Hermitian operator and thus a quantum mechanical observable although it has no classical analogue, the concept being meaningless in the context of classical light waves. In this paper we review work on the application of the parity operator to the problem of quantum metrology for the detection of small phase shifts with quantum optical interferometry using highly entangled field states such as the so-called N00N states, and states obtained by injecting twin Fock states into a beam splitter. With such states and with the performance of parity measurements on one of the output beams of the interferometer, one can breach the standard quantum limit, or shot-noise limit, of sensitivity down to the Heisenberg limit, the greatest degree of phase sensitivity allowed by quantum mechanics for linear phase shifts. Heisenberg limit sensitivities are expected to eventually play an important role in attempts to detect gravitational waves in interferometric detection systems such as LIGO and VIRGO.     

Putting mechanics into circuit quantum electrodynamics

We review the use of mechanical oscillators in circuit quantum electrodynamics. The capacitive coupling of nano-electromechanical systems with quantum bits and superconducting microwave resonators gives rise to a rich quantum physics involving electrons, photons and phonons. We focus in particular on the linear coupling between a mechanical oscillator and a microwave resonator and present the quantum dynamics that stems from the phonotonic Josephson junction. The microwave cavity turns out to be a powerful device to detect quantum phonon states and manipulate entangled states between phonons and photons.     

Deterministic entanglement of photons in two superconducting microwave resonators

Quantum entanglement, one of the defining features of quantum mechanics, has been demonstrated in a variety of nonlinear spinlike systems. Quantum entanglement in linear systems has proven significantly more challenging, as the intrinsic energy level degeneracy associated with linearity makes quantum control more difficult. Here we demonstrate the quantum entanglement of photon states in two independent linear microwave resonators, creating N-photon NOON states (entangled states |N0> + |0N>) as a benchmark demonstration. We use a superconducting quantum circuit that includes Josephson qubits to control and measure the two resonators, and we completely characterize the entangled states with bipartite Wigner tomography. These results demonstrate a significant advance in the quantum control of linear resonators in superconducting circuits.     

Thermal effects on mass detection sensitivity of carbon nanotube resonators in nonlinear oscillation regime

A mass sensor using a nano-resonator has high detection sensitivity, and mass sensitivity is higher with smaller resonators. Therefore, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are the ultimate materials for these applications and have been actively studied. In particular, CNT-based nanomechanical devices may experience high temperatures that lead to thermal expansion and residual stress in devices, which affects the device reliability. In this letter, to demonstrate the influence of the temperature change (i.e., thermal effect) on the mass detection sensitivity of CNT-based mass sensor, dynamic analysis is carried out for a CNT resonator with thermal effects in both linear and nonlinear oscillation regimes. Based on the continuum mechanics model, the analytical solution method with an assumed deflection eigenmode is applied to solve the nonlinear differential equation which involves the von Karman nonlinear strain–displacement relation and the additional axial force associated with thermal effects. A thermal effect on the fundamental resonance behavior and resonance frequency shift due to adsorbed mas, i.e., mass detection sensitivity, is examined in high-temperature environment. Results indicate a valid improvement of fundamental resonance frequency by using nonlinear oscillation in a thermal environment. In both linear and nonlinear oscillation regimes, the mass detection sensitivity becomes worse due to the increasing of temperature in a high-temperature environment. The thermal effect on the detection sensitivity is less effective in the nonlinear oscillation regime. It is concluded that a temperature change of a mass sensor with a CNT-based resonator can be utilized to enhance the detection sensitivity depending on the CNT length, linear/nonlinear oscillation behaviors, and the thermal environment.     

Nonreciprocal ground-state cooling of mechanical resonator in a spinning optomechanical system

We theoretically present a scheme for nonreciprocal ground-state cooling in a double-cavity spinning optomechanical system which is consisted of an optomechanical resonator and a spinning optical harmonic resonator with directional driving. The optical Sagnac effect generated by the whispering-gallery cavity (WGC) rotation creates frequency difference between the WGC mode, we found that the mechanical resonator (MR) can be cooled to the ground state when the propagation direction of driving light is opposite to the spin direction of the WGC, but not from the other side, vice versa, so that the nonreciprocal cooling is achieved. By appropriately selecting the system parameters, the heating process can be completely suppressed due to the quantum interference effect. The proposed approach provides a platform for quantum manipulation of macroscopic mechanical devices beyond the resolved sideband limit.     

Nonlinear coupling of nanomechanical resonators to josephson quantum circuits

We propose a technique to couple the position operator of a nanomechanical resonator to a SQUID device by modulating its magnetic flux bias. By tuning the magnetic field properly, either linear or quadratic couplings can be realized, with a discretely adjustable coupling strength. This provides a way to realize coherent nonlinear effects in a nanomechanical resonator by coupling it to a Josephson quantum circuit. As an example, we show how squeezing of the nanomechanical resonator state can be realized with this technique. We also propose a simple method to measure the uncertainty in the position of the nanomechanical resonator without quantum state tomography.     

Electro-optomechanical cooperative cooling of nanomechanical oscillator beyond resolved sideband regime

We propose a ground-state cooling scheme for a nanomechanical oscillator(NMO)that interacts with an optical cavity via radiation pressure at one side and with a superconducting microwave cavity via a capacitor at the other side.By driving these two cavities on their respective red sidebands with extra laser and microwave fields,the NMO’s dual cooling channel is created through electro-optomechanical cooperation.Differing from the conventional optomechanical system with a single optical cavity wherein ground-state cooling is limited in the resolved sideband,the proposed scheme allows the optical cavity to function in an unresolved sideband regime under the cooperation of a microwave cavity with a high quality factor,or vice versa.In a weak coupling regime we demonstrate that the NMO can be cooled to near its ground-state from a finite temperature with a cooling rate that is significantly faster than that of the single-cavity optomechanical system.The heating process can be completely suppressed by the cooperation of the dual cooling channel by appropriately selecting the system’s parameters.With a decreasing thermal phonon number,the numerical results of final mechanical occupancy gradually approach the analytical cooling limit.     

强耦合串联石墨烯纳米机械振子

与微米机械振子相比, 纳米机械振子使用纳米级材料制备, 尺寸更小, 质量更轻, 它作为探测器, 在探测力、质量等物理量时拥有更高的灵敏度. 石墨烯有高强度、 低密度等优良的机械特性, 被认为是制备纳米机械振子的理想材料. 基于其制备的石墨烯纳米机械振子有着高谐振频率、高品质因子和谐振频率可调性高等优势, 对于纳米力学的基础研究和应用都具有重要的意义. 本文利用微纳加工工艺(包括电子束曝光、 电子束蒸发镀膜、 反应离子刻蚀和微米级定点干法转移技术)制备了串联石墨烯纳米机械振子样品, 并在极低温下(10 mK) 测量了石墨烯机械振子的机械性质, 实现两个串联石墨烯纳米机械振子的强耦合, 耦合强度为1.34 MHz, 协同系数C = 399.     

Dynamical pair correlations of classical and quantum fluids perturbed with weak long-range forces

We study time dependent correlation functions of ideal classical and quantum gases using methods of equilibrium statistical mechanics. The basis for this is the path integral formalism of quantum mechanical systems. By this approach the statistical mechanics of a quantum mechanical system becomes the equivalent of a classical polymer problem in four dimensions where imaginary time is the fourth dimension. Several non-trivial results for quantum systems have been obtained earlier by this analogy. Here we will focus upon particle dynamics. First ideal gases are considered. Then interactions, that are assumed weak and of long range, are added, and methods of classical statistical mechanics are applied to obtain the leading contribution. Comparison is performed with known results of kinetic theory. These results demonstrate how methods developed for systems in thermal equilibrium also is applicable outside equilibrium. Thus, more generally, we have reason to expect that these methods will be accurate and useful for other situations of interacting many-body systems consisting of quantized particles too. To indicate so we sketch the computation of the induced Casimir force between parallel plates filled with ions for the situation where the ions are quantized, but the interaction remains electrostatic. Further in this respect we establish expressions for a leading correction to ab initio calculations for the energies of the quantized electrons of molecules. To our knowledge these two latter applications go beyond earlier results.     

腔光力学系统中的量子测量

腔光力学系统近年来迅猛发展, 在精密测量、量子传感等方面已展现出重要的应用价值. 特别是与微纳技术和冷原子技术结合后, 这一系统正发展成为研究量子测量与量子操控的理想平台. 本文首先综述腔光力学在量子测量, 尤其是量子测量基础理论研究方面的进展; 然后分析腔光力学系统中的量子测量原理; 最后介绍我们近来在这方面的研究进展, 并通过我们设计的一系列新颖的基于腔光力学系统的量子测量方案来具体展示该系统在量子测量、量子操控等方面的潜在应用.     

Hybrid opto-mechanical systems with nitrogen-vacancy centers

In this review, we briefly review recent works on hybrid(nano) opto-mechanical systems that contain both mechanical oscillators and diamond nitrogen-vacancy(NV) centers. We also review two different types of mechanical oscillators. The first one is a clamped mechanical oscillator, such as a cantilever, with a fixed frequency. The second one is an optically trapped nano-diamond with a built-in nitrogen-vacancy center. By coupling mechanical resonators with electron spins, we can use the spins to control the motion of mechanical oscillators. For the first setup, we discuss two different coupling mechanisms, which are magnetic coupling and strain induced coupling. We summarize their applications such as cooling the mechanical oscillator, generating entanglements between NV centers, squeezing spin ensembles etc. For the second setup, we discuss how to generate quantum superposition states with magnetic coupling, and realize matter wave interferometer. We will also review its applications as ultra-sensitive mass spectrometer. Finally, we discuss new coupling mechanisms and applications of the field.     

Cooling of a nanomechanical resonator in presence of a single diatomic molecule

We propose a theoretical scheme for coupling a nanomechanical resonator to a single diatomic molecule via microwave cavity mode of a driven LC$LC$ resonator. We describe the diatomic molecule by a Morse potential and find the corresponding equations of motion of the hybrid system by using Fokker–Planck formalism. Analytical expressions for the effective frequency and the effective damping of the nanomechanical resonator are obtained. We analyze the ground state cooling of the nanomechanical resonator in presence of the diatomic molecule. The results confirm that presence of the molecule improves the cooling process of the mechanical resonator. Finally, the effect of molecule’s parameters on the cooling mechanism is studied.     

Superconducting qubit storage and entanglement with nanomechanical resonators

We propose a quantum computing architecture based on the integration of nanomechanical resonators with Josephson-junction phase qubits. The resonators are GHz-frequency, dilatational disk resonators, which couple to the junctions through a piezoelectric interaction. The system is analogous to a collection of tunable few-level atoms (the Josephson junctions) coupled to one or more electromagnetic cavities (the resonators). Our architecture combines desirable features of solid-state and optical approaches and may make quantum computing possible in a scalable, solid-state environment.     

Ultraefficient cooling of resonators: beating sideband cooling with quantum control

The present state of the art in cooling mechanical resonators is a version of sideband cooling. Here we present a method that uses the same configuration as sideband cooling-coupling the resonator to be cooled to a second microwave (or optical) auxiliary resonator-but will cool significantly colder. This is achieved by varying the strength of the coupling between the two resonators over a time on the order of the period of the mechanical resonator. As part of our analysis, we also obtain a method for fast, high-fidelity quantum information transfer between resonators.