Qutrit quantum information processing with neutral atom arrays

Objective

Quantum technologies are advancing rapidly, with neutral atoms in optical tweezers emerging as a promising platform for scalable quantum information processing. While many physical systems, including neutral atoms, feature high-dimensional Hilbert spaces, current approaches predominantly rely on two-level, qubit encoding. The QutritQIP project proposes to explore the use of qutrits encoded in three energy levels of strontium-88 neutral atoms to enhance quantum science and technology. Under the supervision of Prof. Immanuel Bloch at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, I will investigate how qutrits can unlock new regimes in entanglement, metrology, and quantum error correction beyond the current state-of-the-art. The first objective is the deterministic generation and certification of genuine multi-partite qutrit entanglement, surpassing current bi-partite and post-selected demonstrations and opening a new regime in the study of entanglement. Using qutrit-entangled states, the second objective is to demonstrate quantum-enhanced multi-parameter estimation with the simultaneous estimation of two independent phases in an atomic clock. Finally, I will demonstrate a qutrit-based quantum error correction code, offering practical advantages over qubit-based schemes in terms of resource efficiency. This work will establish the first scalable use of qutrits in neutral atom arrays and show clear experimental benefits for quantum information science. By moving beyond qubits, this research opens new pathways for more efficient and powerful quantum technologies.