Abstract
Coherent control of quantum transitions -- indispensable in quantum technology -- generally relies on the interaction of quantum systems with electromagnetic radiation. Here, we theoretically demonstrate that the non-radiative electromagnetic near-field of a temporally modulated free-space electron beam can be utilized for coherent control of quantum systems. We show that such manipulation can be performed with only classical control over the electron beam itself, and is readily realizable with current technology. This approach may provide a pathway towards spectrally selective quantum control with nano-scale spatial resolution, harnessing the small de Broglie wavelength of electrons.
Highlights
Coherent manipulation of quantum systems with precisely controlled electromagnetic fields, such as laser or microwave pulses, is a ubiquitous tool of quantum science from the search for new physics [1,2] to quantum information processing [3,4]
We theoretically demonstrate that the nonradiative electromagnetic near field of a temporally modulated free-space electron beam can be utilized for coherent control of quantum systems
Our results show that the electromagnetic near field of a classically modulated electron beam can be used to coherently drive quantum systems and potentially provide a pathway to nanoscale resolution
Summary
Coherent manipulation of quantum systems with precisely controlled electromagnetic fields, such as laser or microwave pulses, is a ubiquitous tool of quantum science from the search for new physics [1,2] to quantum information processing [3,4]. Electric dipole transitions and higher multipole transitions can be treated in a similar manner While it has been suggested [12,13] that quantum systems can coherently interact with a stream of electrons with a temporally shaped wave function [14,15,16,17], we theoretically. Demonstrate that electron-mediated manipulation of quantum systems can be achieved when the longitudinal extent of the individual electron wave packets is much shorter than the wavelength of modulation Such classical modulation of the electron beam current density is readily achievable in the microwave (MW) frequency range, as it is an integral part of widely used electronic technologies from microwave heaters to radars
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