Integrated hybrid quantum system as quantum simulator

Recently, the interactions between neutral atoms and charged ions have been addressed for investigations of low temperature chemical reactions [1, 2, 3], the study of polaron physics [4], but also to allow for novel types of quantum simulation [5]. From the experimental side, the challenge is to combine both trapping techniques into a hybrid atom-ion trap to study the atom-ion system. We introduced a novel integrated atom-ion system, which traps both ions and neutral atoms simultaneously under the ion chip [6]. Atom-ion mixtures have similarities to a natural crystalline where atoms play the role of electrons; this allows our system to function as a quantum simulator to study the dynamics of many-body atom-ion systems.

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