I am going to post here all newly submitted articles on the arXiv related to superconducting circuits. If your article has been accidentally forgotten, feel free to contact me
28
Jan
2025
Space-Time-Coupled Qubits for Enhanced Superconducting Quantum Computing
The pursuit of scalable and robust quantum computing necessitates innovative approaches to overcome the inherent challenges of qubit connectivity, decoherence, and susceptibility to
noise and crosstalk. Conventional monochromatic qubit coupling architectures, constrained by nearest-neighbor interactions and limited algorithmic flexibility, exacerbate these issues, hindering the realization of practical large-scale quantum processors. In this work, we introduce a paradigm leveraging a space-time-modulated cryogenic-compatible Josephson metasurface to enable polychromatic qubit coupling. This metasurface facilitates frequency-selective interactions, transforming nearest-neighbor connectivity into all-to-all qubit interactions, while significantly enhancing coherence, noise robustness, and entanglement fidelity. Our proposed approach capitalizes on the unique capabilities of space-time-modulated Josephson metasurfaces, including dynamic four-dimensional wave manipulation, nonreciprocal state transmission, and state-frequency conversion, to mediate multi-frequency qubit interactions. By isolating qubit couplings into distinct spectral channels, the cryogenic-compatible metasurface mitigates crosstalk and environmental decoherence, extending coherence times and preserving quantum state fidelity. Full-wave simulations and quantum performance analyses demonstrate a significant enhancement in the operational efficiency of a superconducting qubit array, showcasing improved connectivity, robustness, and entanglement stability. This study establishes the potential of space-time-modulated cryogenic-compatible Josephson metasurfaces as a transformative platform for next-generation quantum computing, addressing critical bottlenecks and paving the way for scalable, high-performance quantum processors.
Dephasing-induced leakage in multi-level superconducting quantum circuits
Superconducting quantum circuits, such as the transmon, have multiple quantum states beyond the computational subspace. These states can be populated during quantum logic operations;
residual population in such states is known as leakage. While control methods can eliminate this error in ideal systems, leakage will arise from transient population in the presence of dephasing. This dephasing-induced leakage effect is analyzed, both analytically and numerically, for common single and two-qubit operations used in transmon-based approaches to quantum information processing.
27
Jan
2025
Viewing fluxonium through the lens of the cat qubit
We draw analogies between protected superconducting qubits and bosonic qubits by studying the fluxonium Hamiltonian in its Fock basis. The mean-field phase diagram of fluxonium (at
the sweet spot) is identified, with a region in parameter space that is characterized by ℤ2-symmetry-broken ground states. In the heavy fluxonium limit, these ground states are well approximated by squeezed coherent states in a Fock basis (corresponding to persistent current states with definite flux but indefinite charge), and simple expressions are provided for them in terms of the circuit parameters. We study the noise bias in fluxonium via a universal Lindblad master equation and find that the bit-flip rate is exponentially small in Ej/(kBT), while the phase-flip rate does not get worse with this ratio. Analogous behavior is found in cos(2θ) qubits. We discuss first steps towards generating an Ising interaction between protected superconducting qubits on a two-dimensional lattice, with the aim of achieving a passive quantum memory by coupling a static Hamiltonian to a generic thermal bath.
25
Jan
2025
Characterization of Nanostructural Imperfections in Superconducting Quantum Circuits
Decoherence in superconducting quantum circuits, caused by loss mechanisms like material imperfections and two-level system (TLS) defects, remains a major obstacle to improving the
performance of quantum devices. In this work, we present atomic-level characterization of cross-sections of a Josephson junction and a spiral resonator to assess the quality of critical interfaces. Employing scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) combined with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and electron-energy loss spectroscopy (EELS), we identify structural imperfections associated with oxide layer formation and carbon-based contamination, and correlate these imperfections to the pattering and etching steps in the fabrication process and environmental exposure. These results help to understand that TLS imperfections at critical interfaces play a key role in limiting device performance, emphasizing the need for an improved fabrication process.
Construction of new type of CNOT gate using cross-resonance pulse in the transmon-PPQ system
The transmon, known for its fast operation time and the coherence time of tens of microseconds, is the most commonly used qubit for superconducting quantum processors. However, it is
still necessary to enhance the coherence time and the gate fidelity of superconducting quantum processors for the practical implementation of fault-tolerant quantum computing. Meanwhile, a novel superconducting qubit, which has the ability to protect the Cooper-pair parity on the superconducting island, has been proposed. This new qubit shows better coherence performance than the transmon, but it does not yet have an efficient method for realizing a superconducting hybrid system that harnesses it.
In this work, we show how to implement a new type of CNOT gate in a superconducting hybrid system composed of tunable transmon and parity-protected qubit by applying a cross-resonance pulse. First, we provide hardware specifications and pulse parameters to construct a successful two-qubit gate in the hybrid system. Second, we show that our method can supply a CNOT gate of average fidelity with more than 0.998. Therefore, our work implies that the hybrid system may provide a new platform for quantum computers.
24
Jan
2025
Crystalline superconductor-semiconductor Josephson junctions for compact superconducting qubits
The narrow bandgap of semiconductors allows for thick, uniform Josephson junction barriers, potentially enabling reproducible, stable, and compact superconducting qubits. We study vertically
stacked van der Waals Josephson junctions with semiconducting weak links, whose crystalline structures and clean interfaces offer a promising platform for quantum devices. We observe robust Josephson coupling across 2–12 nm (3–18 atomic layers) of semiconducting WSe2 and, notably, a crossover from proximity- to tunneling-type behavior with increasing weak link thickness. Building on these results, we fabricate a prototype all-crystalline merged-element transmon qubit with transmon frequency and anharmonicity closely matching design parameters. We demonstrate dispersive coupling between this transmon and a microwave resonator, highlighting the potential of crystalline superconductor-semiconductor structures for compact, tailored superconducting quantum devices.
23
Jan
2025
Open quantum dynamics of Josephson charge pumps
We investigate the macroscopic dynamics of Josephson charge pumps in the light of Alicki et al.’s theoretical description of the Josephson junction as an open quantum system described
by a Markovian master equation. If the Coulomb interaction between the terminals is taken into account, we find that the resulting description of pumping is physically reasonable and in good qualitative agreement with experimental observations. We comment on how this approach relates to other theoretical treatments of quantum pumps based on time-dependent potentials or scattering amplitudes. We also highlight the significance of our results in the broader context of the dynamics of charge pumping by active systems.
Native Three-Body Interactions in a Superconducting Lattice Gauge Quantum Simulator
While universal quantum computers remain under development, analog quantum simulators offer a powerful alternative for understanding complex systems in condensed matter, chemistry,
and high-energy physics. One compelling application is the characterization of real-time lattice gauge theories (LGTs). LGTs are nonperturbative tools, utilizing discretized spacetime to describe gauge-invariant models. They hold immense potential for understanding fundamental physics but require enforcing local constraints analogous to electromagnetism’s Gauss’s Law. These constraints, which arise from gauge symmetries and dictate the form of the interaction between matter and gauge fields, are a significant challenge for simulators to enforce. Implementing these constraints at the hardware level in analog simulations is crucial. This requires realizing multibody interactions between matter and gauge-field elements, enabling them to evolve together while suppressing unwanted two-body interactions that violate the gauge symmetry. In this paper, we propose and implement a novel parametrically activated three-qubit interaction within a circuit quantum electrodynamics architecture. We experimentally demonstrate a minimal U(1) spin-1/2 model with a time evolution that intrinsically satisfies Gauss’s law in the system. This design serves as the foundational block for simulating LGTs on a superconducting photonic lattice.
Characterization and Optimization of Tunable Couplers via Adiabatic Control in Superconducting Circuits
In the pursuit of scalable superconducting quantum computing, tunable couplers have emerged as a pivotal component, offering the flexibility required for complex quantum operations
of high performance. In most current architectures of superconducting quantum chips, such couplers are not equipped with dedicated readout circuits to reduce complexity in both design and operation. However, this strategy poses challenges in precise characterization, calibration, and control of the couplers. In this work, we develop a hardware-efficient and robust technique based on adiabatic control to address the above issue. The critical ingredient of this technique is adiabatic swap (aSWAP) operation between a tunable coupler and nearby qubits. Using this technique, we have characterized and calibrated tunable couplers in our chips and achieved straightforward and precise control over these couplers. For example, we have demonstrated the calibration and correction of the flux distortion of couplers. In addition, we have also expanded this technique to tune the dispersive shift between a frequency-fixed qubit and its readout resonator over a wide range.
Read out the fermion parity of a potential artificial Kitaev chain utilizing a transmon qubit
Artificial Kitaev chains have emerged as a promising platform for realizing topological quantum computing. Once the chains are formed and the Majorana zero modes are braided/fused,
reading out the parity of the chains is essential for further verifying the non-Abelian property of the Majorana zero modes. Here we demonstrate the feasibility of using a superconducting transmon qubit, which incorporates an end of a four-site quantum dot-superconductor chain based on a Ge/Si nanowire, to directly detect the singlet/doublet state, and thus the parity of the entire chain. We also demonstrate that for multiple-dot chains there are two types of 0-{\pi} transitions between different charging states: the parity-flip 0-{\pi} transition and the parity-preserved 0-{\pi} transition. Furthermore, we show that the inter-dot coupling, hence the strengths of cross Andreev reflection and elastic cotunneling of electrons, can be adjusted by local electrostatic gating in chains fabricated on Ge/Si core-shell nanowires. Our exploration would be helpful for the ultimate realization of topological quantum computing based on artificial Kitaev chains.