Demonstration of integrated microscale optics in surface-electrode ion traps
J True Merrill, Curtis Volin, David Landgren, Jason M Amini, Kenneth Wright, S Charles Doret, C-S Pai, Harley Hayden, Tyler Killian, Daniel Faircloth, Kenneth R Brown, Alexa W Harter, Richart E Slusher · New Journal of Physics · 2011
In ion trap quantum information processing, efficient fluorescence collection is critical for fast, high-fidelity qubit detection and ion–photon entanglement. The expected size of future many-ion processors requires scalable light collection systems. We report on the development and testing of a microfabricated surface-electrode ion trap with an integrated high-numerical aperture (NA) micromirror for fluorescence collection. When coupled to a low-NA lens, the optical system is inherently scalable to large arrays of mirrors in a single device. We demonstrate the stable trapping and transport of 40 Ca + ions over a 0.63 NA micromirror and observe a factor of 1.9 enhancement of photon collection compared to the planar region of the trap.