Space-Time Crystals of Trapped Ions

被引：146

作者：

Li, Tongcang ^{[1
]}

Gong, Zhe-Xuan ^{[2
,3
]}

Yin, Zhang-Qi ^{[3
,4
]}

Quan, H. T. ^{[5
]}

Yin, Xiaobo ^{[1
]}

Zhang, Peng ^{[1
]}

Duan, L. -M. ^{[2
,3
]}

Zhang, Xiang ^{[1
,6
]}

机构：

[1] Univ Calif Berkeley, NSF Nanoscale Sci & Engn Ctr, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA

[2] Univ Michigan, Dept Phys, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 USA

[3] Tsinghua Univ, Inst Interdisciplinary Informat Sci, Ctr Quantum Informat, Beijing 100084, Peoples R China

[4] Chinese Acad Sci, Univ Sci & Technol China, Key Lab Quantum Informat, Hefei 230026, Peoples R China

[5] Univ Maryland, Dept Chem & Biochem, College Pk, MD 20742 USA

[6] Univ Calif Berkeley, Lawrence Berkeley Natl Lab, Div Mat Sci, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA

来源：

PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS | 2012年 / 109卷 / 15期

关键词：

PERSISTENT CURRENTS; SINGLE-ELECTRON; RINGS;

D O I：

10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.163001

中图分类号：

O4 [物理学];

学科分类号：

0702 ;

摘要：

Spontaneous symmetry breaking can lead to the formation of time crystals, as well as spatial crystals. Here we propose a space-time crystal of trapped ions and a method to realize it experimentally by confining ions in a ring-shaped trapping potential with a static magnetic field. The ions spontaneously form a spatial ring crystal due to Coulomb repulsion. This ion crystal can rotate persistently at the lowest quantum energy state in magnetic fields with fractional fluxes. The persistent rotation of trapped ions produces the temporal order, leading to the formation of a space-time crystal. We show that these space-time crystals are robust for direct experimental observation. We also study the effects of finite temperatures on the persistent rotation. The proposed space-time crystals of trapped ions provide a new dimension for exploring many-body physics and emerging properties of matter.

引用

页数：5

共 36 条

[1] Anderson P. W., 1997, BASIC NOTIONS CONDEN
[2] Blatt R, 2012, NAT PHYS, V8, P277, DOI [10.1038/nphys2252, 10.1038/NPHYS2252]
[3] Persistent Currents in Normal Metal Rings
Bleszynski-Jayich, A. C.
Shanks, W. E.
Peaudecerf, B.
Ginossar, E.
von Oppen, F.
Glazman, L.
Harris, J. G. E.
[J]. SCIENCE, 2009, 326 (5950) : 272 - 275
[4] GEONIUM THEORY - PHYSICS OF A SINGLE ELECTRON OR ION IN A PENNING TRAP
BROWN, LS
GABRIELSE, G
[J]. REVIEWS OF MODERN PHYSICS, 1986, 58 (01) : 233 - 311
[5] Influence of the electron-electron interaction on electronic spectra and persistent currents in one-dimensional loops
Burmeister, G
Maschke, K
[J]. PHYSICAL REVIEW B, 2002, 65 (15) : 1553331 - 15533322
[6] THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS CONCERNING QUANTIZED MAGNETIC FLUX IN SUPERCONDUCTING CYLINDERS
BYERS, N
YANG, CN
[J]. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, 1961, 7 (02) : 46 - &
[7] Ion ring in a linear multipole trap for optical frequency metrology
Champenois, C.
Marciante, M.
Pedregosa-Gutierrez, J.
Houssin, M.
Knoop, M.
Kajita, M.
[J]. PHYSICAL REVIEW A, 2010, 81 (04):
[8] Chernodub M. N., ARXIV12036588V1
[9] QUANTUM COMPUTATIONS WITH COLD TRAPPED IONS
CIRAC, JI
ZOLLER, P
[J]. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, 1995, 74 (20) : 4091 - 4094
[10] Clark R.J., ARXIV12076101

← 1 2 3 4 →