Multi-atomic object crystal transport through atomic object confinement apparatus junction

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12237160-B2
Application number	US-202318106434-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 6, 2023
Priority date	Jul 6, 2021
Publication date	Feb 25, 2025
Grant date	Feb 25, 2025

Abstract

A multi-atomic object crystal is transported from a first leg to a second leg of an atomic object confinement apparatus through a corresponding junction. Voltage sources in electrical communication with electrodes of the apparatus are controlled to confine the crystal in the first leg. The voltage sources are controlled to cause transport of the crystal along the first leg to proximate the junction and then to cause generation of a time-dependent potential at the junction that is configured to cause the crystal to traverse a transport path through the junction from the first leg to the second leg via a dynamic potential well. An order of atomic objects within the multi-atomic object crystal is changed as the multi-atomic object crystal traverses the transport path.

First claim

That which is claimed:

1. A method for controlling an atomic object confinement apparatus to cause the transportation of a multi-atomic object crystal through a junction of the atomic object confinement apparatus, the junction formed by two or more legs of the atomic object confinement apparatus, the atomic object confinement apparatus comprising a plurality of electrodes, the method comprising:
controlling one or more voltage sources to cause generation of a time-dependent potential by applying controlling voltage signals to at least a portion of the plurality of electrodes, the time-dependent potential configured to generate a potential well that travels through the junction from a first leg of the two or more legs to a second leg of the two or more legs to cause the multi-atomic object crystal to traverse a transport path through the junction from the first leg to the second leg, wherein an order of atomic objects within the multi-atomic object crystal is changed deterministically as the multi-atomic object crystal traverses the transport path.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transport path is determined based at least in part on a combination of at least (a) a path of constant total confinement for a representative atomic object of the multi-atomic object crystal and (b) a path of radio frequency minimum for the representative atomic object of the multi-atomic object crystal, wherein the combination is determined based on a particular variable path ratio.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the multi-atomic object comprises a first atomic object of a first species having a first mass and a second atomic object of a second species having a second mass, the first mass is greater than the second mass.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the order of atomic objects within the multi-atomic object crystal is changed as the multi-atomic object crystal traverses the transport path such that the first atomic object with the greater mass is closer to the junction than the second atomic object before and after traversing the junction or such that the second atomic object with the lesser mass is closer to the junction than the first atomic object before and after traversing the junction.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising controlling a manipulation source to cause the manipulation source to generate and provide a sympathetic cooling beam such that the sympathetic cooling beams is incident on the multi-atomic object crystal while the multi-atomic object crystal traverses the junction.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the atomic object confinement apparatus is part of a quantum processor, the multi-atomic object crystal comprises a first atomic object used as a qubit atomic object of the quantum processor, and the multi-atomic object crystal comprises a second atomic object used as a sympathetic cooling atomic object.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
controlling one or more voltage sources in electrical communication with one or more respective electrodes of the atomic object confinement apparatus to cause the atomic object confinement apparatus to confine the at least one multi-atomic object crystal in the first leg of the two or more legs; and
controlling the one or more voltage sources to cause transportation of the multi-atomic object crystal along the first leg to proximate the junction;
wherein the potential well characterized by a particular variable axial frequency.

8. A controller comprising at least one processing device, non-transitory memory storing executable instructions, and one or more driver controller elements, the executable instructions configured to, when executed by the processing device, cause the controller to at least:
cause the one or more driver controller elements to control the one or more voltage sources to cause generation of a time-dependent potential by applying controlling voltage signals to at least a portion of the plurality of electrodes, the time-dependent potential that travels through the junction from a first leg of the atomic object confinement apparatus to a second leg of the atomic object confinement apparatus to cause the multi-atomic object crystal to traverse a transport path through the junction from the first leg to the second leg, wherein an order of atomic objects within the multi-atomic object crystal is changed deterministically as the multi-atomic object crystal traverses the transport path.

9. The controller of claim 8 , wherein the transport path is determined based at least in part on a combination of at least (a) a path of constant total confinement for a representative atomic object of the multi-atomic object crystal and (b) a path of radio frequency minimum for the representative atomic object of the multi-atomic object crystal, wherein the combination is determined based on a particular variable path ratio.

10. The controller of claim 8 , wherein the multi-atomic object comprises a first atomic object of a first species having a first mass and a second atomic object of a second species having a second mass, the first mass is greater than the second mass.

11. The controller of claim 10 , wherein the order of atomic objects within the multi-atomic object crystal is changed as the multi-atomic object crystal traverses the transport path such that the first atomic object with the greater mass is closer to the junction that the second atomic object before and after traversing the junction or such that the second atomic object with the lesser mass is closer to the junction than the first atomic object before and after traversing the junction.

12. The controller of claim 8 , wherein the executable instructions are further configured to, when executed by the processing device, cause the controller to at least cause the one or more driver controller elements to control operation of a manipulation source to cause the manipulation source to generate and provide a sympathetic cooling beam such that the sympathetic cooling beams is incident on the multi-atomic object crystal while the multi-atomic object crystal traverses the junction.

13. The controller of claim 8 , wherein the atomic object confinement apparatus is part of a quantum processor, the multi-atomic object crystal comprises a first atomic object used as a qubit atomic object of the quantum processor, and the multi-atomic object crystal comprises a second atomic object used as a sympathetic cooling atomic object.

14. The controller of claim 8 , wherein the executable instructions are further configured to, when executed by the processing device, cause the controller to at least:
cause the one or more driver controller elements to control one or more voltage sources in electrical communication with one or more respective electrodes of the atomic object confinement apparatus to cause the atomic object confinement apparatus to confine the at least one multi-atomic object crystal in the first leg of the two or more legs; and
cause the one or more driver controller elements to control the one or more voltage sources to cause transportation of the multi-atomic object crystal along the first leg to proximate the junction;
wherein the potential well characterized by a particular variable axial frequency.

15. A quantum computer comprising:
an atomic object confinement apparatus comprising a junction connecting a first leg of the atomic object confinement apparatus to at least a second leg of the atomic object confinement apparatus;
one or more voltage sources; and
a controller configured to control operation of the atomic object confinement apparatus to at least cause the transportation of a multi-atom

Assignees

• Quantinuum Llc

Inventors

• Burton William Cody
• Estey Brian
• Hoffman Ian
• Volin Curtis

Classifications

• H01J49/426

  Methods for controlling ions · CPC title

• G06N10/20

  Models of quantum computing, e.g. quantum circuits or universal quantum computers · CPC title

• H01J49/0013

  Miniaturised spectrometers, e.g. having smaller than usual scale, integrated conventional components · CPC title

• G06N10/40

  Physical realisations or architectures of quantum processors or components for manipulating qubits, e.g. qubit coupling or qubit control · CPC title

• H01J49/062 Primary

  Ion guides (linear ion traps performing mass selection H01J49/4225, mass filters H01J49/421) · CPC title