Atomtronics

Atomtronics refers to the process of creating analogues to electronic devices and circuits using atoms. When super-cooled to form Bose-Einstein condensates, atoms placed in an optical lattice may form states analogous to electrons in solid-state crystalline media such as semiconductors. Impurity doping allows the creation of n and p-type semiconductor analogue states, and an atomtronic battery can be created by maintaining two contacts at different chemical potentials. [ B. T. Seaman, M. Krämer, D. Z. Anderson, and M. J. Holland, Atomtronics: Ultracold-atom analogs of electronic devices - "Physical Review A" doi:10.1103/PhysRevA.75.023615 [http://link.aps.org/abstract/PRA/v75/e023615] ] Analogues to diodes and transistors have also been theoretically demonstrated. [ R. A. Pepino, J. Cooper, D. Z. Anderson, M. J. Holland, Atomtronic circuits of diodes and transistors arXiv:0705.3268v1 [http://arxiv.org/abs/0705.3268] ]

Although atomtronic devices have yet to be realized experimentally, the properties of condensed atoms offers a wide range of possible applications. The use of ultra-cold atoms allows for circuit elements that allow for the coherent flow of information and may be useful in connecting classical electronic devices and quantum computers. The use of atomtronics may allow for quantum computers that work on macroscopic scales and do not require the technological precision of laser controlled few ion computing methods. Since the atoms are Bose condensed, they have the property of superfluidity and, therefore, have resistance-less current in which no energy is lost or heat dissipated, similar to superconducting electronic devices. The vast knowledge of electronics may be leveraged to easily adapt to ultracold atomic atomtronic circuits.

See also

* Electronics
* Spintronics

References