Speaker
Description
The large ground-state nuclear-spin manifold of fermionic alkaline-earth atoms is an attractive resource for quantum information, thanks to its weak coupling to external perturbations. However, detection schemes that combine fast state-resolved imaging beyond two states with single-atom resolution remain a significant challenge. State-of-the-art quantum simulators with single-particle and spin detection, such as quantum gas microscopes, also suffer from limited state selectivity and long detection times.
In our experiment, we employ the large ground-state nuclear spin manifold of Sr-87 and introduce a detection technique that combines optical Stern-Gerlach separation with high-fidelity ultrafast fluorescence imaging in free space. We achieve state-resolved detection fidelities for up to four states of a single fermionic strontium atom of 93.6-99.7% within 100 microseconds. These results offer a promising perspective for quantum science with multi-electron atoms, including experimental exploration of SU(N) Fermi-Hubbard physics.
