Circular Rydberg states for quantum many-body physics

Highly excited low-l Rydberg atoms in configurable mircotrap arrays have recently proven highly versatile for studying quantum many-body systems with single particle control. I will report on the advances of a new project pursuing to harness high-l circular Rydberg atoms for quantum simulation. When stabilized against spontaneous and blackbody radiation induced decay in a suitable cavity structure, circular Rydberg states promise orders of magnitude longer lifetimes compared to their low-l counterparts and thus provide an appealing potential to strongly boost coherence times in Rydberg-based interacting atom arrays. To maintain excellent high-NA optical access we employ a capacitor made from indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films [1], which combines transparency in the visible spectral range with high reflection of microwaves. With this approach, we aim to realize long lifetimes for circular Rydberg states even at room temperature.