arXiv subjects

Filippo Troiani

Publications and source records attributed to Filippo Troiani.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

Readout of a weakly coupled qubit through the use of an auxiliary mode

The dispersive coupling between a qubit and a cavity mode is widely used for performing non-destructive readout of the qubit state. In this approach, it is typically required that the dispersive strong coupling regime is achieved. Here we show that the use of an auxiliary cavity mode reduces by orders of magnitude the required value of the dispersive coupling, for a given decay rate of the cavity mode. The analysis is performed within the input-output formalism, in terms of the photon scattering matrix elements and of the signal-to-noise ratio. We derive simple analytical expressions for the optimal parameters and recover the standard single-mode result as a limiting case. The present results can also be applied to the qubit readout based on longitudinal cavity-qubit interactions, and to any sensing scheme where the cavity frequency is used as a probe to estimate some physical parameter of interest.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2018

Microwave dual-mode resonators for coherent spin-photon coupling

We implement superconducting YBCO planar resonators with two fundamental modes for circuit quantum electrodynamics experiments. We first demonstrate good tunability in the resonant microwave frequencies and in their interplay as it emerges from the dependence of the transmission spectra on the device geometry. We then investigate the magnetic coupling of the resonant modes with bulk samples of DPPH organic radical spins. The transmission spectroscopies performed at low temperature show that the coherent spin-photon coupling regime with the spin ensembles can be achieved by each of the resonator modes. The analysis of the results within the framework of the Input-Output formalism and by means of entropic measures demonstrates coherent mixing of the degrees of freedom corresponding to two remote spin ensembles and, with a suitable choice of the geometry, the approaching of a regime with spin-induced mixing of the two photon modes.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

Universal quantum magnetometry with spin states at equilibrium

We address metrological protocols for the estimation of the intensity and the orientation of a magnetic field, and show that quantum-enhanced precision may be achieved by probing the field with an arbitrary spin at thermal equilibrium. We derive a general expression for the ultimate achievable precision, as given by the quantum Fisher information, and express this quantity in terms of common thermodynamic quantities. We also seek for the optimal observable, and show that it corresponds to the spin projection along a suitable direction, defined by a universal function of the spin temperature. Finally, we prove the robustness of our scheme against deviations of the measured spin projection from optimality.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2018

Probing quantum coherence in ultrafast molecular processes: an ab initio approach to open quantum systems

Revealing possible long-living coherence in ultrafast processes allows detecting genuine quantum mechanical effects in molecules. To investigate such effects from a quantum chemistry perspective, we have developed a method for simulating the time evolution of molecular systems, based on ab initio calculations that includes relaxation and environment-induced dephasing of the molecular wave function, whose rates are external parameters. The proposed approach combines a quantum chemistry description of the molecular target with a real-time propagation scheme within the time-dependent stochastic Schroedinger equation. Moreover, it allows a quantitative characterization of the state and dynamics coherence, through the l1-norm of coherence and the linear entropy, respectively. To test the approach, we have simulated femtosecond pulse-shaping ultrafast spectroscopy of terrylenediimide, a well studied fluorophore in single-molecule spectroscopy. Our approach is able to reproduce the experimental findings [R. Hildner et al.,Nature Phys., 7, 172 (2011)], confirming the usefulness of the approach and the correctness of the implementation.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2017

Ultrafast dynamics of photoinduced charge separation

Phenomena involving electron transfer are ubiquitous in nature, photosynthesis and enzymes or protein activity being prominent examples. Their deep understanding thus represents a mandatory scientific goal. Moreover, controlling the separation of photogenerated charges is a crucial prerequisite in many applicative contexts, including quantum electronics, photo-electrochemical water splitting, photocatalytic dye degradation, and energy conversion. In particular, photoinduced charge separation is the pivotal step driving the storage of sun light into electrical or chemical energy. If properly mastered, these processes may also allow us to achieve a better command of information storage at the nanoscale, as required for the development of molecular electronics, optical switching, or quantum technologies, amongst others. In this Topical review we survey recent progress in the understanding of ultrafast charge separation from photoexcited states. We report the state-of-the-art of the observation and theoretical description of charge separation phenomena in the ultrafast regime mainly focusing on molecular- and nano-sized solar energy conversion systems. In particular, we examine different proposed mechanisms driving ultrafast charge dynamics, with particular regard to the role of quantum coherence and electron-nuclear coupling, and link experimental observations to theoretical approaches based either on model Hamiltonians or on first principles simulations.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2017

Quantum metrology at level anti-crossing

We address parameter estimation in two-level systems exhibiting level anti-crossing and prove that universally optimal strategies for parameter estimation may be designed, that is, we may find a parameter independent measurement scheme leading to the ultimate quantum precision independently on the nature and the value of the parameter of interest. Optimal estimation may be achievable also at high temperature depending on the structure of the two-level Hamiltonian. Finally, we show that no improvement is achievable by dynamical strategies and discuss examples of applications.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2016

Watching the coherent birth of polaron pairs in conjugated polymers

Organic semiconductors have the remarkable property that their optical excitation not only generates charge-neutral electron-hole pairs (excitons) but also charge-separated polaron pairs with high yield. The microscopic mechanisms underlying this charge separation have been debated for many years. Here we use ultrafast two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy to study the dynamics of polaron pair formation in a prototypical polymer thin film on a sub-20-fs time scale. We observe multi-period peak oscillations persisting for up to about 1 ps as distinct signatures of vibronic quantum coherence at room temperature. The measured two-dimensional spectra show pronounced peak splittings revealing that the elementary optical excitations of this polymer are hybridized exciton-polaron-pairs, strongly coupled to a dominant underdamped vibrational mode. Coherent vibronic coupling induces ultrafast polaron pair formation, accelerates the charge separation dynamics and makes it insensitive to disorder. These findings open up new perspectives for tailoring light-to-current conversion in organic materials.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Observation of tunneling-assisted highly forbidden single-photon transitions in a Ni$_4$ single-molecule magnet

Forbidden transitions between energy levels typically involve violation of selection rules imposed by symmetry and/or conservation laws. A nanomagnet tunneling between up and down states violates angular momentum conservation because of broken rotational symmetry. Here we report observations of highly forbidden transitions between spin states in a Ni$_4$ single-molecule magnet in which a single photon can induce the spin to change by several times $\hbar$, nearly reversing the direction of the spin. These observations are understood as tunneling-assisted transitions that lift the standard $Δm = \pm 1$ selection rule for single-photon transitions. These transitions are observed at low applied fields, where tunneling is dominated by the molecule's intrinsic anisotropy and the field acts as a perturbation. Such transitions can be exploited to create macroscopic superposition states that are not typically accessible through single-photon $Δm = \pm 1$ transitions.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Probing molecular spin clusters by local measurements

We address the characterization of molecular nanomagnets at the quantum level and analyze the performance of local measurements in estimating the physical parameters in their spin Hamiltonians. To this aim, we compute key quantities in quantum estimation theory, such as the classical and the quantum Fisher information, in the prototypical case of an heterometallic antiferromagnetic ring. We show that local measurements, performed only on a portion of the molecule, allow a precise estimate of the parameters related to both magnetic defects and avoided level crossings.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Detection through exchange energy of multipartite entanglement in spin rings

We investigate multipartite entanglement in rings of arbitrary spins with antiferromagnetic interactions between nearest neighbors. In particular, we show that the non-degenerate ground state of rings formed by an even number ($N$) of spins is $N$-partite entangled, and exchange energy can thus be used as a multipartite-entanglement witness. We develop a general approach to compute the energy minima corresponding to biseparable states, and provide numerical results for a representative set of systems. Despite its global character, exchange energy also allows a spin-selective characterization of entanglement. In particular, in the presence of a magnetic defect, one can derive separability criteria for each individual spin, and use exchange energy for detecting entanglement between this and all the other spins.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2013

On the size of linear superpositions in molecular nanomagnets

Molecular nanomagnets are zero-dimensional spin systems, that exhibit quantum mechanical behavior at low temperatures. Exploiting quantum-information theoretic measures, we quantify here the size of linear superpositions that can be generated within the ground multiplet of high- and low-spin nanomagnets. Amongst the former class of systems, we mainly focus on Mn12 and Fe8. General criteria for further increasing such sizes are also outlined, and illustrated in the case of spin rings. The actual character (micro or macroscopic) of linear superpositions in low-spin systems is inherently ill-defined. Here, this issue is addressed with specific reference to the Cr7Ni and V15 molecules, characterized by an S=1/2 ground state. In both cases, the measures we obtain are larger than those of a single s=1/2 spin, but not proportionate to the number and value of the constituent spins.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2012

Hyperfine-induced decoherence in triangular spin-cluster qubits

We investigate hyperfine-induced decoherence in a triangular spin-cluster for different qubit encodings. Electrically controllable eigenstates of spin chirality (C_z) show decoherence times that approach milliseconds, two orders of magnitude longer than those estimated for the eigenstates of the total spin projection (S_z) and of the partial spin sum (S_{12}). The robustness of chirality is due to its decoupling from both the total- and individual-spin components in the cluster. This results in a suppression of the effective interaction between C_z and the nuclear spin bath.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2010

Semiconductor quantum tubes: dielectric modulation and excitonic response

We study theoretically the optical properties of quantum tubes, one-dimensional semiconductor nanostructures where electrons and holes are confined to a cylindrical shell. In these structures, which bridge between 2D and 1D systems, the electron-hole interaction may be modulated by a dielectric substance outside the quantum tube and possibly inside its core. We use the exact Green's function for the appropriate dielectric configuration and exact diagonalization of the electron-hole interaction within an effective mass description to predict the evolution of the exciton binding energy and oscillator strength. Contrary to the homogeneous case, in dielectrically modulated tubes the exciton binding is a function of the tube diameter and can be tuned to a large extent by structure design and proper choice of the dielectric media.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2010

Spin electric effects in molecular antiferromagnets

Molecular nanomagnets show clear signatures of coherent behavior and have a wide variety of effective low-energy spin Hamiltonians suitable for encoding qubits and implementing spin-based quantum information processing. At the nanoscale, the preferred mechanism for control of quantum systems is through application of electric fields, which are strong, can be locally applied, and rapidly switched. In this work, we provide the theoretical tools for the search for single molecule magnets suitable for electric control. By group-theoretical symmetry analysis we find that the spin-electric coupling in triangular molecules is governed by the modification of the exchange interaction, and is possible even in the absence of spin-orbit coupling. In pentagonal molecules the spin-electric coupling can exist only in the presence of spin-orbit interaction. This kind of coupling is allowed for both $s=1/2$ and $s=3/2$ spins at the magnetic centers. Within the Hubbard model, we find a relation between the spin-electric coupling and the properties of the chemical bonds in a molecule, suggesting that the best candidates for strong spin-electric coupling are molecules with nearly degenerate bond orbitals. We also investigate the possible experimental signatures of spin-electric coupling in nuclear magnetic resonance and electron spin resonance spectroscopy, as well as in the thermodynamic measurements of magnetization, electric polarization, and specific heat of the molecules.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2008

Spin-Electric Coupling in Molecular Magnets

We study the triangular antiferromagnet Cu$_3$ in external electric fields, using symmetry group arguments and a Hubbard model approach. We identify a spin-electric coupling caused by an interplay between spin exchange, spin-orbit interaction, and the chirality of the underlying spin texture of the molecular magnet. This coupling allows for the electric control of the spin (qubit) states, e.g. by using an STM tip or a microwave cavity. We propose an experimental test for identifying molecular magnets exhibiting spin-electric effects.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2004

Field-controlled suppression of phonon-induced transitions in coupled quantum dots

We calculate the longitudinal-acoustic phonon scattering rate for a vertical double quantum dot system with weak lateral confinement and show that a strong modulation of the single-electron excited states lifetime can be induced by an external magnetic or electric field. The results are obtained for typical realistic devices using a Fermi golden rule approach and a three-dimensional description of the electronic quantum states.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2004

Collective properties of electrons and holes in coupled quantum dots

We discuss the properties of few electrons and electron-hole pairs confined in coupled semiconductor quantum dots, with emphasis on correlation effects and the role of tunneling. We shall discuss, in particular, exact diagonalization results for biexciton binding energy, electron-hole localization, magnetic-field induced Wigner molecules, and spin ordering.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2004

Spin-Spin Interaction In Artificial Molecules With In-Plane Magnetic Field

We investigate theoretically the spin-spin interaction of two-electrons in vertically coupled QDs as a function of the angle between magnetic field and growth axis. Our numerical approach is based on a real-space description of single-particle states in realistic samples and exact diagonalization of carrier-carrier Coulomb interaction. In particular, the effect of the in-plane field component on tunneling and, therefore, spin-spin interaction will be discussed; the singlet-triplet phase diagram as a function of the field strength and direction is drawn.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗