Coupling of Rydberg atoms to a superconducting coplanar waveguide resonator for a quantum memory device

Abstract

Ultracold atoms in their ground states are well-isolated quantum systems offering long coherence times. Hence, ensembles of trapped atoms coupling with on-chip microwave resonators are considered as promising systems for the realization of quantum memories.

Here, we demonstrate the coupling of magnetically trapped ultracold 87Rb ground state atoms to a coherently driven superconducting coplanar waveguide resonator. When driving the cavity in resonance with the atomic transition, we observed Rabi oscillations between hyperfine states. This showed the capability in coherent controlling of the atomic states through the cavity field. When driving the cavity on-resonance with the atomic transition, the AC stark shift is observed. This showed the microwave field strength in the cavity seen by atoms.

Strong interaction strength of Rydberg atoms in the microwave transition regime has been proposed as an interface during quantum memory writing. Here, we also describe the implementation of a Rydberg system into our experimental setup.