Generation of optical bottle field arrays using structured light techniques for possible applications in quantum information

Abstract

Quantum computing and quantum simulation are up-and-coming solutions to process information. Quantum information, unlike classical bits 0 or 1, is encoded in a two-level quantum system, what is called qubit. Using trapped neutral atoms as qubits is a rising technique for large-scale quantum computing due to the fact that each atom has discrete quantum states that can be used to encode a qubit.

Light is a tool used to control the position and the quantum state of atoms. Although it is possible to trap a neutral atom in its ground state using optical tweezers, its lack of interaction with other atoms limits its use for the construction of many-qubit quantum systems, that require entanglement. Atoms excited to a Rydberg state have been proven successful for many bodies physics due to its strong dipole-dipole interaction. Rydberg atoms are atoms with their electrons excited to high-energy states, and they can strongly interact with each other due to its strong dipole-dipole interaction; however, Rydberg atoms can not be trapped using optical tweezers because they prefer to stay in the darker region of light.

Three-dimensional zero-intensity zones, i.e., dark regions surrounded by light, are known as optical bottle fields. These bottle fields can be used to trap and manipulate atoms or small particles by means of repulsive optical forces. This trap can be used to optically contain a Rydberg atom, because it minimizes photon scattering and heating effects. Using structured light techniques it is possible create bottle field arrays taking advantage of the spatial structure of a beam.

The aim of this work is create different arrays bottle fields using structured light techniques in order to help improve the performance of the quantum computing and quantum simulation.