Special Physics Seminar

Quantum devices with atom-like defects in diamond

Lily Childress

Yale University

Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) defects in the crystal structure of diamond exhibit long-lived electronic and nuclear spin states that can be addressed optically. These embedded, atom-like structures represent a leading candidate for quantum information processing in the solid state, and their coherent optical transitions open additional possibilities for quantum communication over long distances. In this talk I will motivate and discuss the requirements for optically-networked quantum devices, and consider challenges and opportunities for realizing them with diamond defects. In particular, resonant excitation and emission in these defect centers enables single shot spin detection as well as observation of two-photon quantum interference; these two critical capabilities pave the way towards measurement-based entanglement between remote NV centers. I will also explore future possibilities, and describe applications in magnetometry that illustrate the dual capability of quantum coherence for information processing and metrology.