The discovery of how magnetic fields capture and control quantum particles can accelerate the development of next-generation quantum computers and sensors. Researchers at the University of Regensburg and the University of Michigan have demonstrated how crystal materials use magnetism to confine quantum information carriers to a single dimension, potentially extending the lifetime of quantum information.
The study, published in Natural Materials, reveals how a layered crystalline material uses a magnetic field to capture quantum particles called excitons in a single atomic plate. This control mechanism may be crucial for future quantum technologies.
Quantum Swiss Army Knife
“Long-term vision is that you might build quantum machines or devices that use these three or even all of these properties: photons transmit information, electrons process information through their interactions, magnetism to store information, and sound to regulate and pass information to New frequencies,” explained Mackillo Kira, professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Michigan.
The power of imprisonment
The unique properties of the material come from its layered structure, similar to molecular phyllo pastry. These layers are below -222 degrees Fahrenheit (132 kelvin), forming alternating magnetic fields that create what scientists call an resistant magnetic structure. This magnetic arrangement forces excitons-to-electron and electron “pores” pairs to remain limited to a single atomic layer.
“The magnetic order is the new adjustment knob used to shape excitons and their interactions. This could be a game changer for future electronics and information technology.
Accurate measurement
The ultrafast infrared laser pulses used by the research team lasted only 20 seconds to create and study these limitations of excitons. Their experiments show that excitons exhibit two different energy states—a phenomenon called good structure—can be controlled by changing the magnetic state of the material through temperature or an external magnetic field.
“Switching between magnetized and nonmagnetic states can serve as a very fast method to convert photons and spin-based quantum information, since the degrees of freedom of electrons, photons and spin-based, is closely intertwined with each other,” the university’s researchers said. Matthias Florian pointed out. Michigan and co-first author of the study.
Future applications
The discovery opens up new possibilities for quantum computing and information processing. When confined to a single dimension, quantum information carriers are unlikely to collide with each other and lose their stored information, which may lead to more stable quantum systems.
The research team plans to study whether these restricted excitons can be converted to magnetic excitation, which can provide a crucial link between different types of quantum information carriers (photons, excitons and electron rotation).
The study represents a collaboration between researchers at the University of Regensburg, the University of Michigan, the University of Chemistry and Technology, and the Technical University of Dresden. The study was supported by the German Research Foundation, the National Science Foundation and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research.
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