TY - JOUR
T1 - Influence of electronic spin and spin-orbit coupling on decoherence in mononuclear transition metal complexes
AU - Graham, Michael J.
AU - Zadrozny, Joseph M.
AU - Shiddiq, Muhandis
AU - Anderson, John S.
AU - Fataftah, Majed S.
AU - Hill, Stephen
AU - Freedman, Danna E.
PY - 2014/5/28
Y1 - 2014/5/28
N2 - Enabling the rational synthesis of molecular candidates for quantum information processing requires design principles that minimize electron spin decoherence. Here we report a systematic investigation of decoherence via the synthesis of two series of paramagnetic coordination complexes. These complexes, [M(C2O4)3]3- (M = Ru, Cr, Fe) and [M(CN)6]3- (M = Fe, Ru, Os), were prepared and interrogated by pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy to assess quantitatively the influence of the magnitude of spin (S = 1/2, 3/2, 5/2) and spin-orbit coupling (ζ = 464, 880, 3100 cm-1) on quantum decoherence. Coherence times (T2) were collected via Hahn echo experiments and revealed a small dependence on the two variables studied, demonstrating that the magnitudes of spin and spin-orbit coupling are not the primary drivers of electron spin decoherence. On the basis of these conclusions, a proof-of-concept molecule, [Ru(C2O4)3] 3-, was selected for further study. The two parameters establishing the viability of a qubit are a long coherence time, T2, and the presence of Rabi oscillations. The complex [Ru(C2O4) 3]3- exhibits both a coherence time of T2 = 3.4 μs and the rarely observed Rabi oscillations. These two features establish [Ru(C2O4)3]3- as a molecular qubit candidate and mark the viability of coordination complexes as qubit platforms. Our results illustrate that the design of qubit candidates can be achieved with a wide range of paramagnetic ions and spin states while preserving a long-lived coherence.
AB - Enabling the rational synthesis of molecular candidates for quantum information processing requires design principles that minimize electron spin decoherence. Here we report a systematic investigation of decoherence via the synthesis of two series of paramagnetic coordination complexes. These complexes, [M(C2O4)3]3- (M = Ru, Cr, Fe) and [M(CN)6]3- (M = Fe, Ru, Os), were prepared and interrogated by pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy to assess quantitatively the influence of the magnitude of spin (S = 1/2, 3/2, 5/2) and spin-orbit coupling (ζ = 464, 880, 3100 cm-1) on quantum decoherence. Coherence times (T2) were collected via Hahn echo experiments and revealed a small dependence on the two variables studied, demonstrating that the magnitudes of spin and spin-orbit coupling are not the primary drivers of electron spin decoherence. On the basis of these conclusions, a proof-of-concept molecule, [Ru(C2O4)3] 3-, was selected for further study. The two parameters establishing the viability of a qubit are a long coherence time, T2, and the presence of Rabi oscillations. The complex [Ru(C2O4) 3]3- exhibits both a coherence time of T2 = 3.4 μs and the rarely observed Rabi oscillations. These two features establish [Ru(C2O4)3]3- as a molecular qubit candidate and mark the viability of coordination complexes as qubit platforms. Our results illustrate that the design of qubit candidates can be achieved with a wide range of paramagnetic ions and spin states while preserving a long-lived coherence.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84901704958&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84901704958&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1021/ja5037397
DO - 10.1021/ja5037397
M3 - Article
C2 - 24836983
AN - SCOPUS:84901704958
VL - 136
SP - 7623
EP - 7626
JO - Journal of the American Chemical Society
JF - Journal of the American Chemical Society
SN - 0002-7863
IS - 21
ER -