A quantum interface to charged particles in a vacuum

TL;DR

This paper explores a superconducting qubit device designed to interact with flying charged particles, enabling detection and quantum state transfer without applying force, with detailed analysis of its properties and potential applications.

Contribution

It provides a detailed study of a superconducting qubit device for interacting with charged particles, including error sources and practical applications.

Findings

Device can detect charged particles without force

Quantum states can be transferred between device and particles

Analysis of error sources and device properties

Abstract

A superconducting qubit device suitable for interacting with a flying electron has recently been proposed [H. Okamoto and Y. Nagatani, Appl. Phys. Lett. \textbf{104}, 062604 (2014)]. Either a clockwise or counter clockwise directed loop of half magnetic flux quantum encodes a qubit, which naturally interacts with any single charged particle with arbitrary kinetic energy. Here, the device's properties, sources of errors and possible applications are studied in detail. In particular, applications include detection of a charged particle without applying a force to it. Furthermore, quantum states can be transferred between an array of the proposed devices and the charged particle.