Measurement-induced bistability in the excited states of a transmon

High power measurement-induced cavity response is investigated in the |g>, |e>, and |f> states of a transmon. All the states exhibit photon blockades above a certain critical value, a phenomenon that has previously been understood based on the bistability of semiclassical Duffing oscillators. The measurement-induced state transition (MIST) to high-level transmon states is expected to be one contributor to the bistability; however, the critical values measured in the |e> and |f> states are not coincident with the MIST. To understand this discrepancy, we utilize the recently developed semiclassical dynamics model of a cavity photon state. The appearance of dim and bright cavity states obtained from the model’s steady-state solution leads to the photon blockades at lower critical photon numbers, and this can explain the response of the bistable region in the |e> and |f> states.