US-12626898-B2 - 3D ion traps with connection through substrate

US12626898B2US 12626898 B2US12626898 B2US 12626898B2US-12626898-B2

Abstract

The present disclosure provides electrode portions for generating electric and/or magnetic fields for trapping ions in a trapping zone, a three-dimensional (3D) ion trap including one or more of such electrode portions, systems for trapping ions with such a 3D ion trap, as well as methods for manufacturing such electrode portions. An electrode portions includes an electrode body made of an electrically insulating substrate and elongated in a first direction towards the ion trapping zone, a peak electrode located on an extremity of the electrode body closest to the trapping zone or a side electrode located laterally relative to the extremity, and a connection connected to the peak electrode and leading from the peak electrode through said electrode body away from the trapping zone.

Inventors

Philip Holz
Georg Jacob

Assignees

ALPINE QUANTUM TECHNOLOGIES GMBH

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20231208
Priority Date: 20221209

Claims (12)

1 . A three-dimensional ion trap comprising a plurality of electrode portions for trapping ions in a trapping zone, wherein at least one electrode portion of said plurality of electrode portions comprises: an electrode body comprising an electrically insulating substrate and comprising a portion extending in a first direction towards the ion trapping zone; a peak electrode located on an extremity of the electrode body closest to the trapping zone; a side electrode located on the electrode body laterally of the extremity; and a connection connected to the peak electrode or to the side electrode and leading through said electrode body away from the trapping zone, wherein a width of said portion of the electrode body in a second direction, which is perpendicular to the first direction and to a third direction along the ion trapping zone, decreases along the first direction towards the ion trapping zone.
2 . The three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 , wherein the electrode body and the peak electrode extend in the third direction along the ion trapping zone.
3 . The three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one electrode portion of said plurality of electrode portions comprises: the side electrode that is a first side electrode located on a first side of the electrode body, and/or a second side electrode that is located on another, second side of the electrode body, wherein the first side electrode and the second side electrode extend in the third direction.
4 . The three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one electrode portion of said plurality of electrode portions further comprises a port for connecting the peak electrode or the side electrode to a power source; and the connection is an electric connection that leads from the peak electrode or the side electrode to the port.
5 . The three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 , wherein the connection is an electric connection which connects the peak electrode with another electrode of the same three-dimensional ion trap or of another ion trap so as to mediate electric coupling between trapped ions.
6 . The three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one electrode portion of said plurality of electrode portions comprises: another peak electrode located on the extremity of the electrode body, and another connection that is connected to the other peak electrode and leading from the other peak electrode through the electrode body away from the trapping zone, wherein the other peak electrode is an electrode other than the peak electrode, the other connection is a connection other than the connection connected to the peak electrode, and the other peak electrode is at a different position along the trapping zone than the peak electrode.
7 . The three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 , wherein the connection is made of a thermally conducting material so as to conduct the heat away from the peak electrode or the side electrode.
8 . The three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one electrode portion of the plurality of electrode portions comprises four electrode portions arranged so that each peak electrode of the respective plurality of peak electrodes equidistantly surround the trapping zone, and the three-dimensional ion trap further comprises a frame that holds said four electrode portions.
9 . A system for manipulating ions in an ion trap comprising: the three-dimensional ion trap according to claim 1 ; a power source for supplying electric power over said power connection in the at least one electrode portion of the plurality of electrode portions; and a controller to control the power source so as to control a state of one or more ions trapped in the trapping zone.
10 . A method for manufacturing an ion trap according to claim 1 , comprising: providing said electrode body; forming a cavity in the electrode body; and filling the cavity with a material comprising metal.
11 . The method according to claim 10 , wherein the forming of the cavity is performed by a laser drilling process or an etching process.
12 . The method according to claim 10 , wherein the filling of the cavity is performed by a vapor deposition processes, a galvanic deposition processes, or by a self-assembling utilizing ferromagnetic materials assisted by magnetic fields.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims priority to European Patent Application No. 22212397.8 filed Dec. 9, 2022, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the field of 3D ion traps. Description of Related Art A device for electric trapping of charged particles (ions), also referred to as “ion trap”, typically includes a plurality of electrodes that generate the electric fields for confining the ions typically to a small region of a vacuum chamber. Ion traps are used in many technical applications, such as information processing (quantum computing, quantum simulations), atomic and molecular experiments, spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, atomic/optical clocks, and metrology. Such typical applications often require a very accurate and precise ion trap, i.e. a trap that generates, with very high accuracy, a very specific (predetermined/desired) electric and/or magnetic field configuration. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It may be desirable to increase the performance of ion traps. In some embodiments, this is achieved by routing the electric connection to an electrode of a 3D trap through the non-conducting substrate on which the electrode is located. The present disclosure is defined by the independent claims. Some of the advantageous embodiments are subject matter to the dependent claims. In some embodiments of the present disclosure a three-dimensional (3D) ion trap is provided. The 3D ion trap comprises a plurality of electrode portions for trapping ions in a trapping zone. Each of one or more of said plurality of electrode portions comprises: (i) an electrode body made of an electrically insulating substrate and elongated in a first direction towards the ion trapping zone; (ii) a peak electrode located on an extremity of the electrode body closest to the trapping zone or a side electrode located on the electrode body laterally of the extremity; and (iii) a connection connected to the peak electrode or to the side electrode and leading (from the peak electrode or from the side electrode, respectively) through said electrode body away from the trapping zone. Details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the following, embodiments of the present disclosure are described in more detail with reference to the attached figures and drawings, in which: FIG. 1A is a schematic drawing showing a three-dimensional view of an exemplary ion trap; FIG. 1B is a schematic drawing showing a three-dimensional view of the exemplary ion trap of FIG. 1A with a cut of the upper right electrode portion; FIG. 2 is a two-dimensional view, in the radial direction, onto the exemplary ion trap of FIG. 1A FIG. 3A is a two-dimensional section view, in the axial direction, of the exemplary ion trap of FIG. 1A with view in the axial direction; FIG. 3B is a two-dimensional section view, in the axial direction, of the exemplary ion trap of FIG. 1A at another axial position than in FIG. 3A; FIG. 4 is a schematic drawing illustrating coupling between two ion traps; and FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating exemplary steps for manufacturing an ion trap. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the disclosed subject matter. Furthermore, it is noted that identical reference signs refer to identical or at least functionally equivalent features. DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In the following description, reference is made to the accompanying figures, which form part of the disclosure, and which show, by way of illustration, specific aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure or specific aspects in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be used. It is understood that embodiments of the disclosure may be used in other aspects and comprise structural or logical changes not depicted in the figures. The following detailed description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims. It is understood that the features of the various exemplary embodiments and/or aspects described herein may be combined with each other, unless specifically noted otherwise. For purposes of the description hereinafter, the terms “end,” “upper,” “lower,” “right,” “left,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” “top,” “bottom,” “lateral,” “longitudinal,” and derivatives thereof shall relate to the disclosed subject matter as it is oriented in the drawing figures. However, it is to be understood that the disclosed subject matter may assume various alternative variations and step sequences, except where expressly specified to the contr