Accession Number:

AD1003410

Title:

Decoherence and Decay of Motional Quantum States of a Trapped Atom Coupled to Engineered Reservoirs

Descriptive Note:

Journal Article

Corporate Author:

National Institute of Standards and Technology Boulder United States

Personal Author(s):

• Turchette,Q. A.
• Myatt,C. J.
• King,B. E.
• Sackett,C. A.
• Kielpinski,D.
• Itano,W. M.
• Monroe,C.
• Wineland,D. J.

Report Date:

2000-10-16

Pagination or Media Count:

22.0

Abstract:

We present results from an experimental study of the decoherence and decay of quantum states of a trapped atomic ions harmonic motion interacting with several types of engineered reservoirs. We experimentally simulate three types of reservoirs a high-temperature amplitude reservoir, a zero-temperature amplitude reservoir, and a high-temperature phase reservoir. Interaction with these environments causes the ions motional state to decay or heat, and in the case of superposition states, to lose coherence. We report measurements of the decoherence of super positions of coherent states and two-Fock-state super positions into these reservoirs, as well as the decay and heating of Fock states. We confirm the theoretically well-known scaling laws that predict that the decoherence rate of superposition states scales with the square of the size of the state.

Descriptors:

• quantum theory
• reservoirs
• trapping(particles)
• quantum properties
• ions
• measurement
• decay
• coherence

Subject Categories:

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE