Deterministic coupling of ultracold atomic lattice to a suspended photonic waveguide

TL;DR

This paper reports the deterministic coupling of ultracold atomic lattices with on-chip photonic circuits, advancing scalable quantum technologies and enabling new quantum sensing and imaging applications.

Contribution

It demonstrates a fully controllable platform integrating cold atoms with nanophotonic devices, bridging a key gap in quantum optics and hybrid quantum systems.

Findings

Successful coupling of ultracold atoms to photonic circuits

Enabling scalable quantum computing and sensing

Potential for high-resolution in-situ imaging

Abstract

The deterministic control of light-matter interactions at the level of single particles and on subwavelength scales is central to quantum optics and hybrid integrated quantum technologies. However, combining cold atom research with nanophotonic devices in a fully controllable platform remains a major experimental challenge. Here, we demonstrate the deterministic coupling of an ultracold atomic lattice to light propagating in suspended on-chip photonic circuits. These capabilities open avenues to address scalability challenges in neutral-atom quantum computers and simulators, enabling fast optical readout, efficient and subwavelength non-diffracting interaction zones, and genuine compatibility with integrated solid-state photon sources, detectors, and stop-band modulators. Beyond controllable quantum matter, the platform also enables in-situ imaging of evanescent fields of light and nanoscale structures, including prospects for three-dimensional scanning microscopy with non-invasive single-atom probes for quantum sensing applications.