Phase transition of light in circuit QED lattices coupled to nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond

We propose a hybrid quantum architecture for engineering a photonicMott insulator-superfluid phase transition in a two-dimensional (2D) square lattice of a superconducting transmission line resonator (TLR) coupled to a single nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center encircled by a persistent current qubit. The localization-delocalization transition results from the interplay between the on-site repulsion and the nonlocal tunneling. The phase boundary in the case of photon hopping with real-valued and complex-valued amplitudes can be obtained using the mean-field approach. Also, the quantum jump technique is employed to describe the phase diagram when the dissipative effects are considered. The unique feature of our architecture is the good tunability of effective on-site repulsion and photon-hopping rate, and the local statistical property of TLRs which can be analyzed readily using presentmicrowave techniques. Our work opens new perspectives in quantum simulation of condensed-matter and many-body physics using a hybrid spin circuit-QED system. The experimental challenges are realizable using currently available technologies.

Quantum network of superconducting qubits through opto-mechanical interface

We propose a scheme to realize quantum networking of superconducting qubits based on the opto-mechanical interface. The superconducting qubits interact with the microwave photons, which then couple to the optical photons through the opto-mechanical interface. The interface generates a quantum link between superconducting qubits and optical flying qubits with tunable pulse shapes and carrier frequencies, enabling transmission of quantum information to other superconducting or atomic qubits. We show that the scheme works under realistic experimental conditions and it also provides a way for fast initialization of the superconducting qubits under 1 K instead of 20 mK operation temperature.

Evidence for weak electronic correlations in Fe-pnictides

Using x-ray absorption and resonant inelastic x-ray scattering, charge dynamics at and near the Fe $L$ edges is investigated in Fe pnictide materials, and contrasted to that measured in other Fe compounds. It is shown that the XAS and RIXS spectra for 122 and 1111 Fe pnictides are each qualitatively similar to Fe metal. Cluster diagonalization, multiplet, and density-functional calculations show that Coulomb correlations are much smaller than in the cuprates, highlighting the role of Fe metallicity and strong covalency in these materials. Best agreement with experiment is obtained using Hubbard parameters $Ulesssim 2$eV and $Japprox 0.8$eV.

Polaron Coherence Condensation as the Mechanism for Colossal Magnetoresistance in Layered Manganites

Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy data for the bilayer manganite La1.2Sr1.8Mn2O7 show that, upon lowering the temperature below the Curie point, a coherent polaronic metallic groundstate emerges very rapidly with well defined quasiparticles which track remarkably well the electrical conductivity, consistent with macroscopic transport properties. Our data suggest that the mechanism leading to the insulator-to-metal transition in La1.2Sr1.8Mn2O7 can be regarded as a polaron coherence condensation process acting in concert with the Double Exchange interaction.