Quantum simulations of non-equilibrium dynamics with ion spin chains
Dr. Jiehang Zhang (Joint Quantum Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, USA)

Trapped ions are ideal candidates for engineering quantum systems with individual resolution. Qubits are encoded with the internal levels of the ions, and controlled with laser-driven interactions. Such a system present an excellent coherence time and can find wide applications in quantum simulations and quantum computing. I will present recent experiments using these systems to study non-equilibrium matter, including discrete time-crystals [1], as well as dynamical phases [2]. A spin chain with individual resolution for more than 50 qubits enables many applications such as quantum sampling and optimization.

[1] J. Zhang, et al., Nature 543, 217220 (2017).
[2] J. Zhang, et al., Nature 551, 601604 (2017).