New project: Quantum Sensors for the Hidden Sector

We have just started an exciting project to use quantum electronics to search for dark matter. We will be developing sensitive amplifiers to detect the decay of axions – hypothetical particles that, if they exist, might simultaneously explain dark matter and solve the strong CP problem in particle physics. One PhD studentship is available on…

In Nature Communications: Machine learning for tuning quantum dots

Our paper Machine learning enables completely automatic tuning of a quantum device faster than human experts has been published today in Nature Communications. Semiconductors are among the most promising materials for making a quantum computer. However, semiconductor devices contain defects, which means that every qubit is slightly different. These differences must be cancelled by adjusting…

In Nature Physics: A nanotube oscillator

Our paper A coherent nanomechanical oscillator driven by single-electron tunnelling is online in Nature Physics today. When electrical leads are attached to a suspended carbon nanotube, the nanotube’s motion can be detected from changes in the electrical current that passes through it. At the same time, the nanotube experiences a fluctuating electrostatic force depending on…

ERC Consolidator Project

The group is about to begin an ERC Consolidator Grant for the project “Vibrating carbon nanotubes for probing quantum systems at the mesoscale”. This is a fantastic resource for the next five years of our research.

Conference announcement: UK Quantum Dot Day 2019

We are pleased to be bringing the UK Quantum Dot Day to Lancaster. QD Day 2019 is a one-day workshop on all aspects of research into semiconductor quantum dots. Topics will include electrical transport, optical properties, spin physics, quantum devices, and synthesis. This will be the latest in a series of highly successful workshops organised by…

New manuscript: measuring a vibrating nanotube

Our new paper Measuring carbon nanotube vibrations using a single-electron transistor as a fast linear amplifier is on the arxiv. Suspended nanotubes can be deflected by tiny forces, including the electrostatic force due to single electrons, but the deflection is difficult to track because the resonance frequency is so high: hundreds of MHz or more. In this…

New grant from Lancaster

Our research programme has been selected for an equipment grant from the Faculty of Science and Technology at Lancaster University. This investment is a great start for the group, and will let us buy a state-of-the-art vector signal generator for manipulating quantum states.

Accepted in PRX: Displacemon electromechanics

Our paper Displacemon electromechanics: How to detect quantum interference in a nanomechanical resonator has been accepted by Physical Review X. This is our first paper from Lancaster! To predict the behaviour of small particles, for example electrons moving through a semiconductor, it is essential to use the concept of quantum superposition—objects may traverse multiple paths simultaneously.…