Disclosed herein are methods of manipulating particles on solid substrates via optothermally-gated photon nudging.

The present application discloses a control method for fast trapping and high-frequency mutual ejection of cold atom groups. The control method includes: arranging three groups of optical stops on three groups of light sources (splitters) in three-dimensional magneto-optical traps, to form a shaded regions; ejecting a cold atom group from the first three-dimensional magneto-optical trap along a movement trajectory to the second three-dimensional magneto-optical trap, where the movement trajectory passes through the shaded regions of the two three-dimensional magneto-optical traps; and, when it is determined that the cold atom group enters the shaded region of the first three-dimensional magneto-optical trap, trapping a next cold atom group by turning on three-dimensional cooling light and three-dimensional repumping light in the first three-dimensional magneto-optical trap.

The present disclosure relates to a rotationally symmetric dielectric structure for optical beam shaping and for trapping and manipulating individual particles and living biological cells in aqueous medium, concentrically mounted on the facet of a single-mode optical fiber, wherein the structure comprises at least three total reflection surfaces configured to split a light field emerging from the single-mode optical fiber into at least two separate light paths and wherein the at least three total reflection surfaces are further configured to bring the separate light paths together as a ring beam in a common focal point.

A quantum register can be read out using under-resolved emissions mapping (e.g., imaging). Regions of the quantum register are illuminated concurrently, one array site per region at a time, typically until all sites of each region have been illuminated. A photodetector system then detects for each region whether or not an EMR emission (e.g., due to fluorescence) has occurred in response to illumination of a respective site in that region. The result of the photo detections is a series of emissions maps, e.g., images. The number of emissions maps in the series corresponds to a number of sites per region, while the number of pixels in each image corresponds to a number of regions. A readout result can be based on a time-multiplexed combination of these emissions maps. The emissions maps are under-resolved since the resolution corresponds to the region size rather than the sizes of individual array sites.

An optical trap for laser cooling and trapping atoms. Three pairs of laser beams are directed to cross in a vacuum chamber at a common intersection volume, wherein each pair is formed by two counterpropagating beams. Rather than having a mutually orthogonal arrangement in which each beam pair forms an angle χ of 45° to a reference axis, z, these angles are instead between 5°≤χ≤40°. Moreover, in each beam pair, the counterpropagating beams are not precisely aligned in a common path, as in a conventional magneto-optical trap, but are slightly misaligned by respective misalignement angles [α, β, κ] of typically 0.1° to 2°. The misalignment angles and beam widths are however selected so that a common intersection volume for all six beams is maintained This provides an all-optical trap in which laser cooling and trapping of atoms takes place without a magnetic field being present.

A holographic optical tweezers for manipulating a micro- or nano-size particle, the optical tweezers including a light source configured to emit first and second light beams; a light focusing apparatus configured to focus the first and second light beams to generate focused light beams, which create optical forces; and a trapping assembly configured to receive the first and second focused light beams and form a trap for holding the particle with the optical forces. The trapping assembly includes first and second micromirrors attached to a microscope coverslip.

A magnetic-field shield is used to shield a magneto-optical trap (MOT) in an ultra-high vacuum (UHV) cell from magnetic fields generated by an ion pump used to maintain the UHV. The magnetic-field shield includes an enclosure of ferro-magnetic material that acts to capture portions of the magnetic field generated by the ion pump. However, as the distance between the ion pump and the MOT is less than 6 centimeters, enough of the magnetic field escapes through the ferro-magnetic material, and this leakage could impair the MOT. A drive magnet attached to the yoke redirects magnetic flux, that would otherwise leak out of the magnetic-field shield, along a path within the ferro-magnetic enclosure and away from the MOT.

Disclosed is an atomic interferometer including a source of atoms, a laser source and a magnetic field generating device, a polarizer, a system for adjusting a detuning between two optical frequencies of the incident laser beam, a two-dimensional diffraction grating arranged in such a way as to receive the incident laser beam and to form by diffraction at least three diffracted beams, a controller configured to select a combination of an optical frequency detuning, a polarization state and a magnetic field, the combination being adapted to select a first pair of laser beams among the pairs of beams formed from the incident laser beam and the diffracted beams, the pair of laser beams being applied in such a way as to interact with the cloud of atoms by multi-photon transitions and to detect an acceleration of the cloud of atoms along a measurement direction.

A drop-in multi-optics module for a quantum-particle (e.g., rubidium, cesium) cell provides for more convenient and cost-effective manufacture of such cells (including vacuum cells, cold/ultra-cold matter cells, vapor cells, and channel cells). In a 3D printing approach, a model of a frame augmented by buffer material is 3D printed. The buffer material is removed from the augmented frame to achieved desired dimensions with greater precision than could be achieved by 3D printing the frame directly. Optical and, in some cases, other components are attached to the frame to realize the multi-optics drop-in module. Alternatively, the module can be formed by cutting out portions of a metal sheet and then folding the resulting 2D preform.

Quantum computing results can be stored in a quantum array of quantum-state carriers (QSCs) which must be read out in a form accessible to the classical world. The quantum array can be divided into regions that can be read in parallel. Each region is illuminated one QSC (e.g., atom) at a time and any resulting emissions are detected to determine the quantum state of each QSC and thus the value represented by the QSC. Multi-pixel superpixels are examined in each detection image to determine whether or not a respective QSC emitted in response to illumination. The field of view for each superpixel exceeds the area of the respective QSC, providing tolerance for misalignment of the photodetector relative to the quantum array.