Spin qubit as a quantum sensor of Majorana zero modes

The combination of a strong high spin-orbit 1-dimensional semiconductor wire with a superconductor is predicted to give rise to Majorana bound states at the ends of the wire. Majorana bound states are expected to exhibit nonabelian exchange statistics and be suitable for fault-tolerant quantum computation. However, the Majorana bound states were only studied in very simple devices, that were not suitable for coherent manipulation and readout of quantum states. Consequently, aspects of central importance, such as the state lifetime, coherence and projective measurement remain unaddressed. I propose to use an ancillary system that can be coherently manipulated – an electronic spin in a quantum dot – to probe the quantum nature of the Majorana bound states. Thanks to coupling, the spin evolution will reflect the properties of the bound states. Furthermore, the coupling enables mapping the quantum state of the Majorana bound state on the spin qubit state, allowing for a projective measurement. The goal of the proposed project is to couple a coherently controlled spin to a bound state localized at the end of a proximitized nanowire. This goal will be achieved in several steps. First, I

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Open public project data from NWO, CC0 1.0. Adapted from the NWOpen API.