Non-resonant electric quantum control of individual on-surface spins

TL;DR

This paper proposes a novel method for controlling and measuring the quantum state of a single atomic spin on a surface using non-resonant electric fields and STM-based interferometry, enabling precise spin manipulation.

Contribution

It introduces a new protocol combining Landau-Zener tunneling with LZSM interferometry for on-surface single spin control using non-resonant electric fields.

Findings

Demonstrates the feasibility of quantum state manipulation with non-resonant AC electric fields.

Proposes a protocol for measuring quantum spin tunneling in individual atoms.

Suggests implementation with ESR-STM instrumentation.

Abstract

Quantum control techniques play an important role in manipulating and harnessing the properties of different quantum systems, including isolated atoms. Here, we propose to achieve quantum control over a single on-surface atomic spin using Landau-Zener-St\"uckelberg-Majorana (LZSM) interferometry implemented with Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM). Specifically, we model how the application of time-dependent, non-resonant AC electric fields across the STM tip-surface gap makes it possible to achieve precise quantum state manipulation in an isolated Fe atom on a MgO/Ag(100) surface. We propose a protocol to combine Landau Zener tunneling with LZSM interferometry that permits one to measure the quantum spin tunneling of an individual Fe atom. The proposed experiments can be implemented with ESR-STM instrumentation, opening a new venue in the research of on-surface single spin control.