Advancing the Scalability Frontier of Neutral Atom Quantum Processors

Abstract

Quantum computers hold a promise to solve certain problems that are intractable to classical computers, offering a paradigm shift in fields ranging from cryptography to materials science. However, realizing this potential requires overcoming the challenge of scalability, which encompasses both spatial scalability – the capacity for large qubit registers, and temporal scalability – the capability to execute deep quantum circuits. This thesis describes the construction and experimental characterization of a new rubidium atom array quantum platform, which advances the scalability frontier of atomic quantum processors in both spatial and temporal domains. The platform achieves a record-scale ∼ 99%-filling-fraction array with more than 3,000 qubits, and is shown to operate continuously for more than 2 hours. These advances are enabled by a novel architecture that supports high-flux refilling of atomic qubits without decohering neighboring sites. Combined with other recent progress demonstrated in the field of neutral atom quantum information processing, this platform provides a viable pathway toward large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum processing capable of executing deep error-corrected circuits.