Reversing hydride-ion formation in quantum-information experiments with Be+

Published

January 12, 2015

Author(s)

Brian C. Sawyer, Justin G. Bohnet, Joseph W. Britton, John J. Bollinger

Abstract

We demonstrate photodissociation of BeH⁺ ions within a Coulomb crystal of thousands of ⁹Be⁺ confined in a Penning trap. The BeH⁺ molecular ions form via exothermic reactions between trapped, laser-cooled Be⁺($^2\text{P}_{3/2}$) and background H₂ within the vacuum chamber. The rotational-state-insensitive dissociation scheme described here makes use of 157 nm photons to produce Be⁺ and H as products, thereby restoring Be⁺ ions without the need for reloading. This technique removes a major contaminant species responsible for infidelities in large-scale trapped-ion quantum information experiments and facilitates their operation over a wider range of background H₂ pressures. Extension of this technique to MgH⁺ and AlH⁺ impurities is also discussed.

Citation

Physical Review A

Volume

91

Pub Type

Journals

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Keywords

molecular ions, photodissociation, quantum information

Citation

Sawyer, B. , Bohnet, J. , Britton, J. and Bollinger, J. (2015), Reversing hydride-ion formation in quantum-information experiments with Be+, Physical Review A, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=917598 (Accessed October 13, 2025)