Tools for quantum simulation with ultracold atoms in optical lattices

TL;DR

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of quantum simulation using ultracold atoms in optical lattices, highlighting techniques, applications, and recent technological advances for complex quantum process investigation.

Contribution

It offers a detailed review of experimental tools, methods, and recent progress in quantum simulation with ultracold atoms, serving as a valuable resource for future research and experiment planning.

Findings

Overview of techniques and their advantages and limitations

Discussion of control methods for interactions and external potentials

Description of recent advances in site-resolved imaging and two-electron species

Abstract

After many years of development of the basic tools, quantum simulation with ultracold atoms has now reached the level of maturity where it can be used to investigate complex quantum processes. Planning of new experiments and upgrading existing set-ups depends crucially on a broad overview of the available techniques, their specific advantages and limitations. This Technical Review aims to provide a comprehensive compendium of the state of the art. We discuss the basic principles, the available techniques and their current range of applications. Focusing on the simulation of varied phenomena in solid-state physics using optical lattice experiments, we review their basics, the necessary techniques and the accessible physical parameters. We outline how to control and use interactions with external potentials and between the atoms, and how to design new synthetic gauge fields and spin-orbit coupling. We discuss the latest progress in site-resolved techniques using quantum gas microscopes, and describe the unique features of quantum simulation experiments with two-electron atomic species.