Control of electronic structure and spin in molecular f-block complexes and qubit candidates

The creation and control of coherence in a quantum object, or "qubit", is possible for molecules containing a spin (electron or nuclear), in the same way as for NV centers or ultracold ion arrays in the wider field of quantum information science (QIS).

 

The field of molecular qubits is still young, but already some molecules have been reported which exhibit quantum coherence times that rival solid state qubits. Molecules are also cheap to make with perfect reproducibility, and can be solution processed into perfect arrays, either on surfaces, or at the desired dilution in the bulk phase.

 

By studying metal compounds in which a spin is located at the central metal cation, and the surrounding ligand shell is tunable in composition and symmetry, we can learn how to maximise the retention of spin information, and potentially different ways to set and address the spin. This contribution will discuss design features of some of our current targets containing f-block metal cations.