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Quantum information

Noisy neighbours under control

Nature Materials volume 10, pages 811–813 (2011)Cite this article

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The ability to control the nuclear spins in a semiconductor quantum dot is an important step towards a long-lived and controllable electron spin qubit.

The solid state has been the arena for numerous demonstrations of quantum mechanical effects. Lately, coherent control of single quantum systems has been achieved in a variety of systems, including single atoms and photons, as well as solid-state systems. One example of a two-state quantum system is the spin of an electron, which constitutes an interesting realization of a quantum bit (qubit)1. In solid state, the interaction between two qubits can typically be made strong rather easily, which is a big advantage if one aims to construct a quantum information processor. The disadvantage, however, is that solid-state qubits tend to interact with a high number of other particles in their environment, which essentially results in noise. For example, the above-mentioned electron spin qubits are affected by the noise created by the interaction with surrounding nuclear spins of the atoms in the solid. This noise can effectively destroy the quantum coherence of the electron spin, which is essential for any quantum information protocol. Various ways to increase the coherence by acting directly on the electron spin and its interaction have been explored in the past. Now, writing in Nature Materials2, Maxim Makhonin and colleagues demonstrate a different route whereby they directly control the nuclear spins in a semiconductor quantum dot.

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Figure 1: Electron energy levels (top), nuclear spin configuration in the quantum dot (centre) and PL intensity (bottom).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Guido Burkard is in the Department of Physics, University of Konstanz, D-76457 Konstanz, Germany,

    Guido Burkard

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  1. Guido Burkard
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Correspondence to Guido Burkard.

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Burkard, G. Noisy neighbours under control. Nature Mater 10, 811–813 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat3154

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