Xiao-Jing Lu

We design faster-than-adiabatic state transfers (switching of quantum numbers) in time-dependent coupled-oscillator Hamiltonians. The manipulation to drive the process is found using a two-dimensional invariant recently proposed in S. Simsek and F. Mintert, Quantum 5 (2021) 409, and involves both rotation and transient scaling of the principal axes of the potential in a Cartesian representation. Importantly, this invariant is degenerate except for the subspace spanned by its ground state. Such degeneracy, in general, allows for infidelities of the final states with respect to ideal target eigenstates. However, the value of a single control parameter can be chosen so that the state switching is perfect for arbitrary (not necessarily known) initial eigenstates. Additional 2D linear invariants are used to find easily the parameter values needed and to provide generic expressions for the final states and final energies. In particular we find time-dependent transformations of a two-dimensional harmonic trap for a particle (such as an ion or neutral atom) so that the final trap is rotated with respect to the initial one, and eigenstates of the initial trap are converted into rotated replicas at final time, in some chosen time and rotation angle.

Shuttling protocols designed by shortcut-to-adiabaticity techniques may suffer from perturbations and imperfect implementations. We study the motional excitation of a single ion shuttled in harmonic traps with time-dependent, "systematic" oscillatory perturbations around the nominal parameters. These elementary perturbations could form any other by superposition. Robust shuttling strategies are proposed and compared, and optimizations are performed.

We investigate the effect of slow spring-constant drifts of the trap used to shuttle two ions of different mass. We design transport protocols to suppress or mitigate the final excitation energy by applying invariant-based inverse engineering, perturbation theory, and a harmonic dynamical normal-mode approximation. A simple, explicit trigonometric protocol for the trap trajectory is found to be robust with respect to the spring-constant drifts.

We theoretically investigate the motional excitation of a single ion caused by spring-constant and position uctuations of a harmonic trap during trap shuttling processes. A detailed study of the sensitivity on noise for several transport protocols and noise spectra is provided. The effect of slow spring-constant drifts is also analyzed. Trap trajectories that minimize the excitation are designed combining invariant-based inverse engineering, perturbation theory, and optimal control.

Combining invariant-based inverse engineering, perturbation theory, and Optimal Control Theory, we design fast, transitionless expansions of cold neutral atoms or ions in Gaussian anharmonic traps. Bounding the possible trap frequencies and using a "bang-singular-bang" control we find fast processes for a continuum of durations up to a minimum time that corresponds to a purely bang-bang (stepwise frequency constant) control.