Laser-cooled trapped ions are among the most pristine and controllable quantum systems. Research performed in Prof. Islam’s group is currently focused on the following:
- Quantum simulation: The QITI laboratory is building a programmable trapped-ion quantum simulator with 171Yb+ qubits, with optical controls at the level of individual ions for studying problems in quantum many-body physics and computation.
- QuantumION: In collaboration with Prof. Crystal Senko’s group and supported by Transformative Quantum Technologies (TQT) , we are building an open-access, remotely operable trapped-ion quantum computer (QuantumION). The hardware is based on up to sixteen 133Ba+ ion-qubits.
- Quantum simulation algorithms: We research on classical and quantum algorithms to make quantum simulation more efficient, e.g. by using modern machine learning methods. We collaborate with the Perimeter Institute Quantum Intelligence Laboratory
Job opportunities
We acknowledge financial support from University of Waterloo, NSERC, Government of Ontario, US ARO, and Transformative Quantum Technologies (TQT, CFREF).
Recent News
06 Aug 2021 - Gilbert receives IQC Achievement Award!
Congratulations to Chung-You (Gilbert) Shih , a PhD student in the group for receiving the IQC Achievement Award, 2021! The awards are given to University of Waterloo graduate students working on quantum information at the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC), based on exceptional achievement in research. Gilbert was recognized for developing an ultra-precise optical addressing system for a trapped-ion quantum simulator.
20 Jul 2021 - Nikhil wins best presenter award at nationwide CAP congress competition!
Congratulations to Nikhil Kotibhaskar , a PhD student in the group for winning the best student presenter award at the annual Congress of the Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP)! He first won the competition in the Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics category and then went on to win the national competition among all areas of physics. There were about 325 competitors and an 81-member judging team.
Nikhil talked about our research on developing a trapped-ion quantum simulator.
08 Apr 2021 - paper on holographic optical addressing of ions published
Our paper on ultra-precise holographic optical addressing of ions is published in npj Quantum Information! This is an experimental research.
Recent Publications
Manipulating phonons of a trapped-ion system using optical tweezers
Conventional radio-frequency ion traps provide limited controls over the confining potential. In this manuscript, we theoretically and numerically investigate a hybrid trapping architecture by incorporating optical tweezers (laser beams tightly focused on individual ions) in a conventional trap. The local control over the potential would offer many capabilities - such as engineering a target set of phonon modes, fixing the motional de-coupling problem in a multi-species ion system, and allowing novel experiments in quantum thermodynamics.
Simulating a measurement-induced phase transition for trapped ion circuits
In this theoretical proposal, we describe a hybrid circuit where coherent time evolution is interrupted by sparse projective measurements. A measurement-driven phase transition between volume-law and area-law entanglement is predicted at a specific rate of measurement. Proof-of-principle experiments can be performed in modern trapped ion quantum information processors. Abstract: The rise of programmable quantum devices has motivated the exploration of circuit models which could realize novel physics.
Programming the full stack of an open-access quantum computer
This manuscript describes the full stack programming of QuantumION, an open-access, remote-controlled, trapped-ion quantum information processor for the research community, currently being developed at Waterloo. QuantumION is a joint initiative with Prof. Crystal Senko’s research group and funded by Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF). Abstract: We present a new quantum programming language called ‘Quala’ that enables true full-stack programming of quantum hardware.
