Optical readout for spins in silicon, research costs (ORSI)


Main funder

Funder's project number352645


Funds granted by main funder (€)

  • 160 000,00


Funding program


Project timetable

Project start date01/09/2022

Project end date31/08/2024


Summary

Silicon has been the material underpinning the modern information technology revolution. I would argue that it might be the most important material of the coming quantum technology age as well. This will be of tremendous advantage to the diffusion of quantum technologies as they can then leverage the existing infrastructure of conventional silicon electronics. My project is aimed at unlocking the quantum potential of silicon technologies. It is aimed at enabling a not too distant future where silicon chips encompassing quantum enabled sensors and/or quantum computing processors are widely available and only require commercially available push-of-a-button pulse-tube coolers and laser light to operate.

Quantum bits (qubits) are of fundamental interest not only for the tantalizing prospect of building a quantum computer but also because they can work as powerful quantum sensors. In this project, I will advance a novel emerging physical implementation of qubits: impurity spin states in silicon. These states are known to be excellent qubits with the longest single qubit coherence times demonstrated in solid state. This is a significant advantage for both quantum sensing and quantum information applications. However, at the moment the application potential of silicon impurity spin qubits is hindered by two related obstacles: current readout techniques require nanoelectric connections, millikelvin temperatures and high magnetic fields, and, most importantly, there are no convenient ways to couple multiple qubits. My research goal is to overcome all of these issues in order to unleash the full quantum potential of silicon technologies.

In this project, a new transduction mechanism that coherently couples the silicon impurity spin qubits to optical photons at the quantum level will be established. This quantum transducer will be realized using a nanomechanical resonator that can be coupled to both spins and to optical photons. Hence, we will create an effective coupling between spins and optical photons and establish a mechanism to read out the qubits optically at 4 K temperatures, as well as provide a route to control and couple spins both optically and mechanically. The created integrated quantum circuits in silicon will not only have a huge potential for quantum information processing but will also provide a solid-state on-chip testbed for a plethora of quantum physics experiments and enable optically readable ultra-sensitive silicon quantum sensors.


Principal Investigator


Primary responsible unit


Internal follow-up group

Profiling areaNanoscience Center (Department of Physics PHYS, JYFL) (Faculty of Mathematics and Science) (Department of Chemistry CHEM) (Department of Biological and Environmental Science BIOENV) NSC


Last updated on 2022-29-11 at 07:34