Scheme for continuous force detection with a single electron at the level of $10^{-27}\ \mathrm{N}$

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Main Authors: Ďurovčíková, Dominika, Sudhir, Vivishek
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Ďurovčíková, Dominika
Sudhir, Vivishek
author_facet Ďurovčíková, Dominika
Sudhir, Vivishek
contents The detection of weak forces is a central problem in physics and engineering, ranging in importance from fundamental pursuits such as precision tests of gravity, gravitational-wave detection, and searches for dark matter, to applications such as force microscopy. These pursuits require a low-mass mechanical force transducer with a high quality factor, whose motion can be measured in a quantum-noise-limited manner. Here we study the ultimate example of such a transducer: a single trapped electron. We propose and analyze in detail a new scheme for high-sensitivity continuous force detection using a single trapped electron whose motion is coupled to a microwave cavity field via image currents induced in an antenna. We derive the fundamental and technical limits to the sensitivity of this scheme and show that despite the disparity in size between that of a single electron and the wavelength of the microwave field, it is possible to continuously monitor the charge's zero-point motion and use it as a force detector with a sensitivity as low as $6\times 10^{-27}\ \mathrm{N} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}$ in the gigahertz regime. This sensitivity improves on the state-of-the-art by four orders of magnitude and thus paves the way to novel precision experiments.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2402_05998
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Scheme for continuous force detection with a single electron at the level of $10^{-27}\ \mathrm{N}$
Ďurovčíková, Dominika
Sudhir, Vivishek
Quantum Physics
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Instrumentation and Detectors
The detection of weak forces is a central problem in physics and engineering, ranging in importance from fundamental pursuits such as precision tests of gravity, gravitational-wave detection, and searches for dark matter, to applications such as force microscopy. These pursuits require a low-mass mechanical force transducer with a high quality factor, whose motion can be measured in a quantum-noise-limited manner. Here we study the ultimate example of such a transducer: a single trapped electron. We propose and analyze in detail a new scheme for high-sensitivity continuous force detection using a single trapped electron whose motion is coupled to a microwave cavity field via image currents induced in an antenna. We derive the fundamental and technical limits to the sensitivity of this scheme and show that despite the disparity in size between that of a single electron and the wavelength of the microwave field, it is possible to continuously monitor the charge's zero-point motion and use it as a force detector with a sensitivity as low as $6\times 10^{-27}\ \mathrm{N} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}$ in the gigahertz regime. This sensitivity improves on the state-of-the-art by four orders of magnitude and thus paves the way to novel precision experiments.
title Scheme for continuous force detection with a single electron at the level of $10^{-27}\ \mathrm{N}$
topic Quantum Physics
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Instrumentation and Detectors
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2402.05998