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Remote quantum entanglement between two micromechanical oscillators

Nature volume 556, pages 473–477 (2018)Cite this article

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Abstract

Entanglement, an essential feature of quantum theory that allows for inseparable quantum correlations to be shared between distant parties, is a crucial resource for quantum networks1. Of particular importance is the ability to distribute entanglement between remote objects that can also serve as quantum memories. This has been previously realized using systems such as warm2,3 and cold atomic vapours4,5, individual atoms6 and ions7,8, and defects in solid-state systems9,10,11. Practical communication applications require a combination of several advantageous features, such as a particular operating wavelength, high bandwidth and long memory lifetimes. Here we introduce a purely micromachined solid-state platform in the form of chip-based optomechanical resonators made of nanostructured silicon beams. We create and demonstrate entanglement between two micromechanical oscillators across two chips that are separated by 20 centimetres . The entangled quantum state is distributed by an optical field at a designed wavelength near 1,550 nanometres. Therefore, our system can be directly incorporated in a realistic fibre-optic quantum network operating in the conventional optical telecommunication band. Our results are an important step towards the development of large-area quantum networks based on silicon photonics.

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Fig. 1: Devices and experimental setup.
Fig. 2: Creation and detection of entanglement between two remote mechanical oscillators.
Fig. 3: Phase sweep of the entangled state.
Fig. 4: Time sweep of the entangled state.

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Acknowledgements

We thank V. Anant, K. Hammerer, J. Hofer, S. Hofer, R. Norte, K. Phelan and J. Slater for discussions and help. We also acknowledge assistance from the Kavli Nanolab Delft, in particular from M. Zuiddam and C. de Boer. This project was supported by the European Commission under the Marie Curie Horizon 2020 initial training programme OMT (grant 722923), Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter (FOM) Projectruimte grants (15PR3210, 16PR1054), the Vienna Science and Technology Fund WWTF (ICT12-049), the European Research Council (ERC CoG QLev4G, ERC StG Strong-Q), the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) under projects F40 (SFB FOQUS) and P28172, and by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO/OCW), as part of the Frontiers of Nanoscience programme, as well as through a Vidi grant (680-47-541/994). R.R. is supported by the FWF under project W1210 (CoQuS) and is a recipient of a DOC fellowship of the Austrian Academy of Sciences at the University of Vienna.

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Ralf Riedinger, Andreas Wallucks, Igor Marinković.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Vienna Center for Quantum Science and Technology, Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Ralf Riedinger, Clemens Löschnauer, Markus Aspelmeyer & Sungkun Hong

  2. Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands

    Andreas Wallucks, Igor Marinković & Simon Gröblacher

Authors
  1. Ralf Riedinger
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  2. Andreas Wallucks
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  3. Igor Marinković
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  4. Clemens Löschnauer
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  5. Markus Aspelmeyer
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  6. Sungkun Hong
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  7. Simon Gröblacher
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Contributions

R.R., A.W., I.M., M.A., S.H. and S.G. planned the experiment. A.W., I.M. and S.G. performed the device design and fabrication. R.R., A.W., I.M., C.L., M.A., S.H. and S.G. performed the measurements, analysed the data and wrote the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Sungkun Hong or Simon Gröblacher.

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Riedinger, R., Wallucks, A., Marinković, I. et al. Remote quantum entanglement between two micromechanical oscillators. Nature 556, 473–477 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-018-0036-z

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