Projects Details

Wigner Transport Dynamics of Spatial Electron Entanglement

  
Project Number P37080-N Quantum Austria   
Principal Investigator Josef Weinbub
Scientists/Scholars Mauro Ballicchia
Scientific Fields Quantum mechanics (25%)
Nanoelectronics (25%)
Computer simulation (25%)
Mathematical modelling (25%)
Keywords Spatial electron entanglement, Wigner function, Quantum non-locality, Nano-electromagnetism, Particle Wigner approach, Gauge-invariance
Approval Date 1. May 2023
Start of Project 30. June 2023
Additional Information Entry in FWF Database

Abstract

Quantum entanglement refers to quantum states of objects to become interdependent. Entanglement has been one of the key exciting quantum processes since the beginning of quantum mechanics in the first half of the 20th century. Historically, photons were primarily utilized for studying entanglement, albeit alternative objects, such as electron spin, are also heavily researched nowadays. However, recent years saw staggering progress in the coherent generation and control of individual electrons, making it possible to utilize the wave nature of electrons in a similar manner as in the photonic world. This opens new research opportunities to study wave-based, spatial electron-electron entanglement and is thus at the core of this research. In addition, the effect of electromagnetic fields on entangled electron transport is of great interest to study the impact of different electromagnetic control and guiding mechanisms. Available modeling and simulation approaches are computationally prohibitive and provide only limited physical intuition about the involved quantum transport processes. We will, therefore, develop a particle Wigner approach to model the transport dynamics of spatially entangled electrons in 2D systems. Our modeling approach will be able to incorporate external electromagnetic fields and will provide an intuitive wave picture of the transport. We will make the developments available in our simulation tool ViennaWD. Our research will enable new ideas for future nanoelectronic systems (e.g., 2D materials) and electron quantum optics systems (e.g., coupled wave guides, interferometers, electron detection).

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