Optomechanics for quantum technologies

TL;DR

This paper reviews recent advances in optomechanics, highlighting how control over mechanical systems with light enables quantum state engineering, entanglement, and applications in sensing, transduction, and fundamental physics.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of recent progress in quantum state preparation, entanglement, and applications of optomechanical systems in quantum technologies.

Findings

Progress in quantum state preparation and entanglement in mechanical systems

Applications in quantum sensing, transduction, and topological physics

Advances in small-scale thermodynamics using optomechanical platforms

Abstract

The ability to control the motion of mechanical systems through its interaction with light has opened the door to a plethora of applications in fundamental and applied physics. With experiments routinely reaching the quantum regime, the focus has now turned towards creating and exploiting interesting non-classical states of motion and entanglement in optomechanical systems. Quantumness has also shifted from being the very reason why experiments are constructed to becoming a resource for the investigation of fundamental physics and the creation of quantum technologies. Here, by focusing on opto- and electromechanical platforms we review recent progress in quantum state preparation and entanglement of mechanical systems, together with applications to signal processing and transduction, quantum sensing, topological physics, as well as small-scale thermodynamics.