Ultrafast optical control of semiconductor donor electron spins
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Robust qubits and reliable techniques to control those qubits are essential for quantum computing applications. In this work, I investigate the use of fast optical pulses to prevent decoherence and manipulate semiconductor electron spins in two material systems. I also demonstrate a novel technique for decoherence measurements that may improve imaging capabilities and yield new information of solid-state materials. In the first system investigated, electrons bound to silicon donors in GaAs, I show partial coherent control of the electron spins using an ultrafast (picosecond) pulse. I find it possible to rotate the spins an angle > pi/3 at a fidelity of 0.9 with the limited rotation angle likely due to the presence of unwanted excitations. I use a sequence of these pulses to perform a small-angle, optical, spin-echo experiment and measure a decoherence time of 7 microseconds, presumably caused by magnetic noise from nuclear spin diffusion. This technique is significant because of its improved time resolution, spatial resolution, and power requirements over existing methods. The second material studied, electrons bound to fluorine donors in ZnSe, has the potential to be an excellent qubit. Its larger binding energy, potential for isotopic purification of the host-lattice nuclear spins, and presence of fluorine nuclear spin 1/2 coupled to the electron spin will likely lead to higher fidelity manipulations and longer spin-memory times than seen for electrons bound to Si:GaAs. In this work, I show preliminary optical measurements that identify emission from single donors and verify the presence of a three-level Lambda-system, laying the foundation for fast optical control and decoherence studies. The work in this thesis helps establish the qubit potential of both materials, and the techniques developed to control and measure these spins are applicable to almost any optically active, solid-state, electron-spin system.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic; electronic resource; remote |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Publication date | 2010 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Associated with | Clark, Susan Marie |
|---|---|
| Associated with | Stanford University, Department of Applied Physics |
| Primary advisor | Yamamoto, Yoshihisa |
| Thesis advisor | Yamamoto, Yoshihisa |
| Thesis advisor | Harris, S. E. (Stephen Ernest), 1936- |
| Thesis advisor | Mabuchi, Hideo |
| Advisor | Harris, S. E. (Stephen Ernest), 1936- |
| Advisor | Mabuchi, Hideo |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Susan Marie Clark. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Department of Applied Physics. |
| Thesis | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2010. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2010 by Susan Marie Clark
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
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