Magnetic levitation and spatial superposition of a nanodiamond with a current-carrying chip

Abstract:We propose a current-carrying-chip scheme for generating spatial quantum superpositions using a levitating nanodiamond with a built-in nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centre defect. Our setup is versatile, for a mass range of $10^{-19}~{\rm kg}\leq m\leq 10^{-17}~{\rm kg}$ a superposition size of range ${\cal O}(100){\rm nm} < \Delta x < {\cal O}(10) {\rm \mu m}$ is achievable in $t\leq 0.1$s, depending on the position we launch from the centre of the diamagnetic trap. Using numerical simulations, we provide an in-depth analysis of the chip that can support stable trapping of the particle in all three dimensions as well as create a spatial superposition along the $x$-axis, while producing a very tight trap in the transverse directions. This setup enables the creation of a Schrödinger cat state with a diamagnetically levitated nanoparticle in a table-top experiment. Although the mass and superposition size considered here remain below those required for a QGEM test, the proposed device provides a building block toward future QGEM experiments.

arXiv:2601.06608 [quant-ph]

(or arXiv:2601.06608v2 [quant-ph] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2601.06608 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite

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