Confined bulk states as a long-range sensor for impurities and a transfer channel for quantum information

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that confined bulk electron states in low-dimensional structures can serve as long-range sensors for impurity properties and as channels for quantum information transfer, with potential for high coherence over nanometer scales.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of using confined bulk electron states in surface structures for sensing and quantum information transfer, supported by ab initio calculations.

Findings

Oscillations of electron density in magnetic chains on metallic surfaces.

Identification of involved electrons as bulk electrons.

Potential for high-efficiency quantum information transfer over nanometers.

Abstract

We show that confinement of bulk electrons can be observed at low-dimensional surface structures and can serve as a long-range sensor for the magnetism and electronic properties of single impurities or as a quantum information transfer channel with large coherence lengths. Our ab initio calculations reveal oscillations of electron density in magnetic chains on metallic surfaces and help to unambiguously identify the electrons involved as bulk electrons. We furthermore discuss the possibility of utilizing bulk state confinement to transfer quantum information, encoded in an atom's species or spin, across distances of several nanometers with high efficiency.