Search

We investigate microwave interference from a spin ensemble and its mirror image in a one-dimensional waveguide. Away from the mirror, the resonance frequencies of the Kittel mode (KM) inside a ferrimagnetic spin ensemble have sinusoidal shifts as the normalized distance between the spin ensemble and the mirror increases compared to the setup without the mirror. These shifts are a consequence of the KM's interaction with its own image. Furthermore, the variation of the magnon radiative decay into the waveguide shows a cosine squared oscillation and is enhanced twofold when the KM sits at the magnetic antinode of the corresponding eigenmode. We can finely tune the KM to achieve the maximum adsorption of the input photons at the critical coupling point. Moreover, by placing the KM in proximity to the node of the resonance field, its lifetime is extended to more than eight times compared to its positioning near the antinode.

The ability to slow down light at the single-photon level has applications in quantum information processing and other quantum technologies. We demonstrate two methods, both using just a single artificial atom, enabling dynamic control over microwave light velocities in waveguide quantum electrodynamics (waveguide QED). Our methods are based on two distinct mechanisms harnessing the balance between radiative and non-radiative decay rates of a superconducting artificial atom in front of a mirror. In the first method, we tune the radiative decay of the atom using interference effects due to the mirror; in the second method, we pump the atom to control its non-radiative decay through the Autler--Townes effect. When the half the radiative decay rate exceeds the non-radiative decay rate, we observe positive group delay; conversely, dominance of the non-radiative decay rate results in negative group delay. Our results advance signal-processing capabilities in waveguide QED.

Low Surface Brightness Galaxies (LSBGs) are excellent probes of quenching and other environmental processes near massive galaxies. We study an extensive sample of LSBGs near massive hosts in the local universe that are distributed across a diverse range of environments. The LSBGs with surface-brightness $\mu_{\rm eff,g}> $24.2 mag arcsec$^{-2}$ are drawn from the Dark Energy Survey Year 3 catalog while the hosts with masses $9.0< log(M_{\star}/M_{\odot})< 11.0$ comparable to the Milky Way and the Large Magellanic Cloud are selected from the z0MGS sample. We study the projected radial density profiles of LSBGs as a function of their color and surface brightness around hosts in both the rich Fornax-Eridanus cluster environment and the low-density field. We detect an overdensity with respect to the background density, out to 2.5 times the virial radius for both hosts in the cluster environment and the isolated field galaxies. When the LSBG sample is split by $g-i$ color or surface brightness $\mu_{\rm eff,g}$, we find the LSBGs closer to their hosts are significantly redder and brighter, like their high surface-brightness counterparts. The LSBGs form a clear 'red sequence' in both the cluster and isolated environments that is visible beyond the virial radius of the hosts. This suggests a pre-processing of infalling LSBGs and a quenched backsplash population around both host samples. However, the relative prominence of the 'blue cloud' feature implies that pre-processing is ongoing near the isolated hosts compared to the cluster hosts., Comment: 22 pages, 7 figures

A coherent electromagnetic field can be described by its amplitude, frequency, and phase. All these properties can influence the interaction between the field and an atom. Here we demonstrate the phase shaping of microwaves that are scattered by a superconducting artificial atom coupled to the end of a semi-infinite 1D transmission line. In particular, we input a weak exponentially rising pulse with phase modulation to a transmon qubit. We observe that field-atom interaction can be tuned from nearly full interaction (interaction efficiency, i.e., amount of the field energy interacting with the atom, of 94.5%) to effectively no interaction (interaction efficiency 3.5%).

Loading quantum information deterministically onto a quantum node is an important step towards a quantum network. Here, we demonstrate that coherent-state microwave photons, with an optimal temporal waveform, can be efficiently loaded onto a single superconducting artificial atom in a semi-infinite one-dimensional (1D) transmission-line waveguide. Using a weak coherent state (average photon number N<<1 with an exponentially rising waveform, whose time constant matches the decoherence time of the artificial atom, we demonstrate a loading efficiency of above 94% from 1D semi-free space to the artificial atom. We also show that Fock-state microwave photons can be deterministically loaded with an efficiency of 98.5%. We further manipulate the phase of the coherent state exciting the atom, enabling coherent control of the loading process. Our results open up promising applications in realizing quantum networks based on waveguide quantum electrodynamics (QED).