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Spin cross-correlation experiments in an electron entangler

Author

Listed:
  • Arunav Bordoloi

    (University of Basel
    University of Maryland)

  • Valentina Zannier

    (NEST, Istituto Nanoscienze-CNR and Scuola Normale Superiore)

  • Lucia Sorba

    (NEST, Istituto Nanoscienze-CNR and Scuola Normale Superiore)

  • Christian Schönenberger

    (University of Basel
    University of Basel)

  • Andreas Baumgartner

    (University of Basel
    University of Basel)

Abstract

Correlations are fundamental in describing many-body systems. However, in experiments, correlations are notoriously difficult to assess on a microscopic scale, especially for electron spins. Even though it is firmly established theoretically that the electrons in a Cooper pair1 of a superconductor form maximally spin-entangled singlet states with opposite spin projections2–4, no spin correlation experiments have been demonstrated so far. Here we report the direct measurement of the spin cross-correlations between the currents of a Cooper pair splitter5–13, an electronic device that emits electrons originating from Cooper pairs. We use ferromagnetic split-gates14,15, compatible with nearby superconducting structures, to individually spin polarize the transmissions of the quantum dots in the two electronic paths, which act as tunable spin filters. The signals are detected in standard transport and in highly sensitive transconductance experiments. We find that the spin cross-correlation is negative, consistent with spin singlet emission, and deviates from the ideal value mostly due to the overlap of the Zeeman split quantum dot states. Our results demonstrate a new route to perform spin correlation experiments in nano-electronic devices, especially suitable for those relying on magnetic field sensitive superconducting elements, like triplet or topologically non-trivial superconductors16–18, or to perform Bell tests with massive particles19,20.

Suggested Citation

  • Arunav Bordoloi & Valentina Zannier & Lucia Sorba & Christian Schönenberger & Andreas Baumgartner, 2022. "Spin cross-correlation experiments in an electron entangler," Nature, Nature, vol. 612(7940), pages 454-458, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:612:y:2022:i:7940:d:10.1038_s41586-022-05436-z
    DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05436-z
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    Cited by:

    1. Juan Carlos Estrada Saldaña & Alexandros Vekris & Luka Pavešič & Rok Žitko & Kasper Grove-Rasmussen & Jesper Nygård, 2024. "Correlation between two distant quasiparticles in separate superconducting islands mediated by a single spin," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-7, December.
    2. Qingzhen Wang & Sebastiaan L. D. Haaf & Ivan Kulesh & Di Xiao & Candice Thomas & Michael J. Manfra & Srijit Goswami, 2023. "Triplet correlations in Cooper pair splitters realized in a two-dimensional electron gas," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-7, December.
    3. Marco Valentini & Oliver Sagi & Levon Baghumyan & Thijs Gijsel & Jason Jung & Stefano Calcaterra & Andrea Ballabio & Juan Aguilera Servin & Kushagra Aggarwal & Marian Janik & Thomas Adletzberger & Rub, 2024. "Parity-conserving Cooper-pair transport and ideal superconducting diode in planar germanium," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.

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