******NON-TECHNICAL ABSTRACT***** The goal of this project is to use the quantum mechanical properties of electrons to create advanced solid-state devices, particularly devices in which information is encoded in spatially-separated electrons. Potential applications of these devices - in which electronic information is "entangled" - include advanced cryptography and ultra-powerful "quantum" computers. Devices will be created using nanotechnology fabrication techniques and materials such as superconductors, carbon nanotubes, and ferromagnets. Experiments measuring quantities such as the electrical conductance and interactions of electrons will be supported by theories to work systematically through issues related to the implementation of an entangler. The work will result in successful entangler devices, and will also allow for significant progress in our understanding of some key nanoscale materials. The collaborative structure of the research will provide a rich environment for training undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers in a broad spectrum of nanotechnology-related work. Educational aspects will be further integrated through the development of courses directly related to the proposed research and through research-related seminars and meetings that target high-school teachers, women, and underrepresented minorities.
The goal of this project is to create and characterize spin-correlated electron pairs in nanostructures as a major step towards the realization of solid-state quantum entangler devices. Spin-separated singlets from superconductors will be injected into spatially separated carbon nanotubes and ferromagnetic nanowires to create spin-entangled devices. Experimental measurements of transport, phase coherence, and noise correlations will be supported by theoretical investigations to address issues such as the influence of competing ordered states, the proximity effect at superconductor-correlated state interfaces, and optimal measurement configurations for spin injection, spin transport, and entanglement tests. This work will allow for significant progress in our understanding of strongly-correlated nanoscale systems, and may form the basis of future solid-state quantum cryptography, teleportation, and quantum computation devices. The collaborative structure of the research will provide a rich environment for training undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers in a broad spectrum of nanotechnology-related work. Educational aspects will be further integrated through the development of courses directly related to the proposed research and through research-related seminars and meetings that target high-school teachers, women, and underrepresented minorities.
