Evidence for entanglement at high temperatures in an engineered molecular magnet

TL;DR

This study reports the synthesis and analysis of a molecular magnet exhibiting quantum entanglement at temperatures up to 732 K, indicating potential for quantum information applications.

Contribution

First synthesis and structural analysis of a molecular magnet showing entanglement at unprecedented high temperatures.

Findings

Entanglement persists up to 732 K.

Large energy gap (282 K) may protect against decoherence.

Molecular magnets are promising for quantum computing.

Abstract

The molecular compound [Fe$_{2}$($\mu_{2}$-oxo)(C$_{3}$H$_{4}$N$_{2}$)$_{6}$(C$_{2}$O$_{4}$)$_{2}$] was designed and synthesized for the first time and its structure was determined using single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The magnetic susceptibility of this compound was measured from 2 to 300 K. The analysis of the susceptibility data using protocols developed for other spin singlet ground-state systems indicates that the quantum entanglement would remain at temperatures up to 732 K, significantly above the highest entanglement temperature reported to date. The large gap between the ground state and the first-excited state (282 K) suggests that the spin system may be somewhat immune to decohering mechanisms. Our measurements strongly suggest that molecular magnets are promising candidate platforms for quantum information processing.