Quantum state tracking and control of a single molecular ion in a thermal environment

Abstract

Understanding molecular state evolution is central to many disciplines, including molecular dynamics, precision measurement, and molecule-based quantum technology. Details of the evolution are obscured when observing a statistical ensemble of molecules. Here, we reported real-time observations of thermal radiation-driven transitions between individual states ("jumps") of a single molecule. We reversed these "jumps" through microwave-driven transitions, resulting in a twentyfold improvement in the time the molecule dwells in a chosen state. The measured transition rates showed anisotropy in the thermal environment, pointing to the possibility of using single molecules as in-situ probes for the strengths of ambient fields. Our approaches for state detection and manipulation could apply to a wide range of species, facilitating their uses in fields including quantum science, molecular physics, and ion-neutral chemistry.

37 pages, 8 figures

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• Quantum state tracking and control of a single molecular ion in a thermal environment
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• Strategies for implementing quantum error correction in molecular rotation
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• State Selective Preparation and Nondestructive Detection of Trapped ${\mathrm{O}}_2^{+}$
• Precise Determination of Excited State Rotational Constants and Black-Body Thermometry in Coulomb Crystals of Ca${}^{+}$ and CaH${}^{+}$
• High-fidelity quantum state control of a polar molecular ion in a cryogenic environment
• Molecular Quantum Control Algorithm Design by Reinforcement Learning
• Charge Exchange Dynamics in Cold Collisions of ${}^{40}$CaH${}^{+}$ and ${}^{39}$K