Speaker
Description
Levitated optomechanics provides a promising platform for precision sensing and quantum experiments with massive mesoscopic objects. The performance of optically levitated nanoparticle systems is ultimately governed by the light–matter interaction. Increasing the strength of this interaction leads to higher trap stiffness and improved measurement efficiency, the latter being particularly important for measurement-based quantum control.
Here, we demonstrate ultra-stiff optical trapping of silica nanoparticles in vacuum using a deep parabolic mirror, which generates strong optical field gradients at focus. We measure record-high centre-of-mass oscillation frequencies in the megahertz range across all three translational degrees of freedom. Building on structured-light approaches, we further investigate radially polarised vortex beams as a route to tailoring the focal optical potential and enhancing trapping efficiency.
Together, these results place our levitodynamical system in a high-frequency regime favourable for motional quantum ground-state cooling by increasing the oscillator energy scale and shifting mechanical resonances away from dominant low-frequency technical noise. As a result, these findings extend the capabilities of levitated sensors by relaxing the conditions for ground-state cooling and enabling faster readout.
| I am the presenting author | Yes |
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