Trapped-ion quantum simulation of excitation transport: disordered, noisy, and long-range connected quantum networks

TL;DR

This paper proposes a trapped-ion quantum simulation platform to study excitation transport in quantum networks, exploring effects of disorder, noise, and interaction range, with potential insights into biological and physical systems.

Contribution

It introduces a controllable quantum simulation scheme for excitation transport in open quantum networks using trapped ions, enabling detailed study of disorder and noise effects.

Findings

Feasible implementation in current ion-trap experiments.

Ability to control disorder, noise, and interaction range.

Potential to mimic biological excitation transport mechanisms.

Abstract

The transport of excitations governs fundamental properties of matter. Particularly rich physics emerges in the interplay between disorder and environmental noise, even in small systems such as photosynthetic biomolecules. Counterintuitively, noise can enhance coherent quantum transport, which has been proposed as a mechanism behind the high transport efficiencies observed in photosynthetic complexes. This effect has been called "environmental-assisted quantum transport" (ENAQT). Here, we propose a quantum simulation of the excitation transport in an open quantum network, taking advantage of the high controllability of current trapped-ion experiments. Our scheme allows for the controlled study of various different aspects of the excitation transfer, ranging from the influence of static disorder and interaction range, over the effect of Markovian and non-Markovian dephasing, to the impact of a continuous insertion of excitations. Our proposal discusses experimental error sources and realistic parameters, showing that it can be implemented in state-of-the-art ion-chain experiments.