Microfabrication techniques for trapped ion quantum information processing

Quantum-mechanical principles can be used to process information (QIP). In one approach, linear arrays of trapped, laser cooled ion qubits (two-level quantum systems) are confined in segmented multi-zone electrode structures. The ion trap approach to QIP requires trapping and control of numerous ions in electrode structures with many trapping zones. I investigated microfabrication of structures to trap, transport and couple large numbers of ions. Using 24Mg+ I demonstrated loading and transport between zones in microtraps made of boron doped silicon. This thesis describes the fundamentals of ion trapping, the characteristics of silicon-based traps amenable to QIP work and apparatus to trap ions and characterize traps. Microfabrication instructions appropriate for nonexperts are included. Ion motional heating was measured. <<>> Using MEMs techniques I built a Si micro-mechanical oscillator and demonstrated a method to reduce the kinetic energy of its lowest order mechanical mode via capacitive coupling to a driven radio frequency (RF) oscillator. Cooling resulted from a RF capacitive force, phase shifted relative to the cantilever motion. The technique was demonstrated by cooling the 7 kHz fundamental mode from room temperature to 45 K. <<>> I also discuss an implementation of the semiclassical quantum Fourier transform (QFT) using three beryllium ion qubits. The QFT is a crucial step in a number of quantum algorithms including Shor's algorithm, a quantum approach to integer factorization which is exponentially faster than the fastest known classical factoring algorithm. This demonstration incorporated the key elements of a scalable ion-trap architecture for QIP.

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