Paving the way towards reliable atom-light entanglement
The presented work provides important ingredients for atom-light entanglement. Preparing the quantum switch in a coherent superposition between the ground and the excited state (the “on” and “off” setting - “0” and ”1”) creates atom-light entanglement, a unique and strange connection between the incoming photon and the atomic switch. “Atom-light entanglement is a crucial requirement for quantum networks, where information is transferred from stationary qubits like atoms to flying qubits like photons. The presented switchable mirror demonstrates an entirely new ansatz to realize atom-light entanglement, that is of fundamental interest and may have a number of applications in quantum technologies.”, adds Johannes Zeiher, Principal Investigator of the study.
Original publication:
Kritsana Srakaew, Pascal Weckesser, Simon Hollerith, David Wei, Daniel Adler, Immanuel Bloch & Johannes Zeiher
A subwavelength atomic array switched by a single Rydberg atom
Nature Physics, 16 February 2023
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