Spins in few-electron quantum dots

TL;DR

This review comprehensively covers experimental methods and physics of electron spins in quantum dots, focusing on electrical measurement techniques, spin manipulation, and decoherence mechanisms relevant for quantum information and spintronics.

Contribution

It provides an overview of electrical measurement techniques for spin properties, spin control methods, and the comparison of experimental results with theoretical models, specifically for one- and two-electron quantum dots.

Findings

Electrical methods effectively extract spin properties.

Techniques enable spin rotation, measurement, and interaction control.

Experimental results align with theories of spin relaxation and dephasing.

Abstract

This review describes the physics of spins in quantum dots containing one or two electrons, from an experimentalist's viewpoint. Various methods for extracting spin properties from experiment are presented, restricted exclusively to electrical measurements. Furthermore, experimental techniques are discussed that allow for: (1) the rotation of an electron spin into a superposition of up and down, (2) the measurement of the quantum state of an individual spin and (3) the control of the interaction between two neighbouring spins by the Heisenberg exchange interaction. Finally, the physics of the relevant relaxation and dephasing mechanisms is reviewed and experimental results are compared with theories for spin-orbit and hyperfine interactions. All these subjects are directly relevant for the fields of quantum information processing and spintronics with single spins (i.e. single-spintronics).