0000000000030810
AUTHOR
Viorica N. Gheorghe
Summary of Trap Properties
Three-dimensional confinement of charged particles requires a potential energy minimum at some region in space, in order that the corresponding force is directed toward that region in all three dimensions. In general, the dependence of the magnitude of this force on the coordinates can have an arbitrary form; however, it is convenient to have a binding force that is harmonic, since this simplifies the analytical description of the particle motion.
Quantum Computing with Trapped Charged Particles
The concept of quantum computing has no clear cut origin. It emerged from combinations of information theory and quantum mechanical concepts. A decisive step was taken by Feynman [414, 415] who considered the possibility of universal simulation, a quantum system which could simulate the physical behavior of any other. Feynman gave arguments which suggested that quantum evolution could be used to compute certain problems more efficiently than any classical computer. His device may be considered as not sufficiently specified to be called a computer. The next important step was taken in 1985 by Deutsch [310]. His proposal is generally considered to represent the first blueprint for a quantum c…
Mass Spectroscopy in Penning Trap
While mass spectrometry in Paul traps serves well mainly for molecular analysis in chemistry, Penning traps provide high accuracy and precision. The technique is based on the fact that the ratio of cyclotron frequencies ω c = (Q/M)B of two ions in the same magnetic field B gives directly the ratio of their masses ω c(1)/ω c(2) = M(2)/M(1). If carbon-12 as the standard of the atomic mass scale is used as reference, the mass of the ion of interest is obtained directly in atomic units. Although the cyclotron frequency is not an eigenfrequency of the Penning trap, it can be obtained from combinations of ω+, ω, and ω z as evident from the set of equations (1.31)-(1.33). In the ideal case of a pe…
Mass Spectrometry Using Paul Traps
Mass is one of the basic quantities to characterize any material object, whether an atom, molecule, nucleus, or elementary particle. The measurement of mass therefore serves to detect and identify atomic, molecular, and nuclear species, and can help determine their structure and binding energy. For example, a precise determination of the mass of a nucleus is of importance through its binding energy, not only for various aspects of nuclear physics but also for other branches of physics, e.g. tests of the weak interaction, of quantum electrodynamics, and of the standard model [46]. Also in astrophysics the masses of unstable isotopes involved in stellar nucleosynthesis, especially the r proce…
Quantum Effects in Charged Particle Traps
It is a fundamental feature of quantum mechanics that a group of particles can be in a state described by one common wavefunction which cannot be factored into individual particle wavefunctions; they are then said to be in an entangled state [294-296]. A measurement of the state of a constituent part of the entangled system determines the state of all the others. In a system that is not entangled, the states of the individual particles are determined independently. Ions isolated and trapped in vacuo in electromagnetic fields provide an unparalleled means of realizing long-lived entangled quantum states [297] through the coupling of the normal modes of oscillation in the trap by the long ran…
Lifetime Studies in Traps
A knowledge of the radiative lifetimes of excited atomic states is of wide interest, not only in the detailed understanding of intrinsic atomic structure and dynamics but also in the fields of plasma diagnostics and astrophysics. The transition rates of intercombination and electric-dipole forbidden lines are of particular importance, since their low transition probability gives them long optical depths in plasmas and astrophysical environments.