Spins coupled to a persistent current

摘要

The development of electronic technologies based on the principles of quantum mechanics, such as quantum computing, requires coupling and integration of quantum objects of various kinds on the same electronic chip. For such integration to succeed, each object needs to be among the best in its class. On page 221 of this issue, Zhu et al.1 make progress in this direction by successfully demonstrating coupling between two quantum systems: a superconducting flux quantum bit (qubit) and an ensemble of identical, highly 'coherent' quantum spins.