RII Track-4:NSF: Introducing Quantum Logic Spectroscopy to Greater Southern Nevada as a Vital Quantum Control and Information Process Method

This Research Infrastructure Improvement Track-4 EPSCoR Research Fellows project will provide a fellowship to an Assistant Professor and training for one graduate student per project year at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV). This work will be conducted in collaboration with researchers at the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST).

Pioneered by NIST in 2005, Quantum Logic Spectroscopy (QLS) stands as a revolutionary methodology enabling universal quantum control and detection of ions and has significantly impacted the fields of precision measurements. This fellowship aims to facilitate the transfer of QLS technology and expertise from NIST to UNLV. This objective will be realized through multiple means.

The PI and graduate students will make several visits, each extending about a few months, to NIST. This will allow the researchers to gain hands-on experience and interact with NIST experts, while also having persistent efforts to establish a QLS experimental platform at UNLV. The anticipated outcomes will be multifold.

First, a functional QLS platform will be established at UNLV. Second, a robust connection between NIST and UNLV will be created. Third, two experienced graduate students will be developed at UNLV.

Fourth, scientific outputs in quantum control and state readout of heavy molecular ions will be generated. Fifth, the groundwork will be prepared for a research and education center dedicated to quantum science at UNLV. As a leading research focus in both fundamental studies and industrial applications, quantum science research initiated by this EPSCoR fellowship presents substantial career opportunities and can play a crucial role in enhancing the diversity of recruitment and systematic retention of women, underrepresented minorities, and first-generation college students in science and engineering.

The PI’s research group at UNLV focuses on developing extremely sensitive quantum sensors using molecular ions to explore new physics beyond the Standard model. Although QLS technology has significantly advanced precision measurements in atomic clocks, highly charged ions, and molecular ions, its applications in testing fundamental symmetries, such as exploring CP-violating effects, remain unexplored.

The primary challenge arises from the incompatibility between a biased electric field necessitated for CP-violating measurements and the motional entanglement required by the QLS scheme. To overcome this obstacle, the PI's group at UNLV has proposed an innovative rotation-induced quantum control protocol. By incorporating the QLS scheme into this newly proposed precision metrology approach, it is possible to greatly enhance the sensitivity of CP-violating measurements.

This, in turn, could lead to the discovery or constraint of new physics beyond the Standard Model. Furthermore, this method could be applicable to a wide range of molecular species, such as 232ThF+, 229ThF+, 181TaO+, and 175LuOH+. The capability of investigating generic molecular species enables opportunities to study broad questions in fundamental physics in parallel.

With the support of this fellowship, the PI’s group has opportunities to develop a designated QLS platform for precision spectroscopy of 181TaO+ with strong support from NIST. This constitutes a critical step towards ushering in a new era of CP-violation measurements. Moreover, introducing QLS technology will enable research activities at UNLV focused on studying actinide chemistry in terms of spectroscopy and chemical reactivity.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.