Negretti, A | Search NASA

DOE OSTI2011

Fast and robust quantum computation with ionic Wigner crystals

We present a detailed analysis of the modulated-carrier quantum phase gate implemented with Wigner crystals of ions confined in Penning traps. We elaborate on a recent scheme, proposed by two of the authors, to engineer two-body interactions between ions in such crystals. We analyze the situation in which the cyclotron ({omega}{sub c}) and the crystal rotation ({omega}{sub r}) frequencies do not fulfill the condition {omega}{sub c}=2{omega}{sub r}. It is shown that even in the presence of the magnetic field in the rotating frame the many-body (classical) Hamiltonian describing small oscillations from the ion equilibrium positions can be recast in canonical form. As a consequence, we are able to demonstrate that fast and robust two-qubit gates are achievable within the current experimental limitations. Moreover, we describe a realization of the state-dependent sign-changing dipole forces needed to realize the investigated quantum computing scheme.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

DOE OSTI2011

Comparison between microscopic methods for finite-temperature Bose gases

We analyze the equilibrium properties of a weakly interacting, trapped quasi-one-dimensional Bose gas at finite temperatures and compare different theoretical approaches. We focus in particular on two stochastic theories: a number-conserving Bogoliubov (NCB) approach and a stochastic Gross-Pitaevskii equation (SGPE) that have been extensively used in numerical simulations. Equilibrium properties like density profiles, correlation functions, and the condensate statistics are compared to predictions based upon a number of alternative theories. We find that due to thermal phase fluctuations, and the corresponding condensate depletion, the NCB approach loses its validity at relatively low temperatures. This can be attributed to the change in the Bogoliubov spectrum, as the condensate gets thermally depleted, and to large fluctuations beyond perturbation theory. Although the two stochastic theories are built on different thermodynamic ensembles (NCB, canonical; SGPE, grand-canonical), they yield the correct condensate statistics in a large Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) (strong enough particle interactions). For smaller systems, the SGPE results are prone to anomalously large number fluctuations, well known for the grand-canonical, ideal Bose gas. Based on the comparison of the above theories to the modified Popov approach, we propose a simple procedure for approximately extracting the Penrose-Onsager condensate from first- and second-order correlation functions that is both computationally convenient and of potential use to experimentalists. This also clarifies the link between condensate and quasicondensate in the Popov theory of low-dimensional systems.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗