Description:

Quantum sensing and metrology seek to use quantum states and entanglement to improve our ability measure a variety of quantities beyond what could be done classically.  Dissipation is usually viewed as an anathema to quantum sensing, as it degrades and scrambles the correlations in a quantum state that could otherwise provide an advantage.  In this talk, I’ll introduce a set of ideas showing that when properly controlled, dissipation and other kinds of non-unitary dynamics can actually be a resource for improved quantum sensing.  I’ll discuss how dissipative processes can produce and stabilize entangled many-body states with advantages over traditional approaches based on coherent dynamics.  I’ll also discuss a new modality for many-body sensing, where one attempts to optimally extract information emitted by a sensor system into its dissipative environment.  These ideas are relevant to a number of experimental sensing platforms, especially those employing ensembles of two-level atoms or solid-state spins coupled to a cavity.  

Aashish Clerk, Professor of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago

Host: Archana Kamal