Simulating the vibrational quantum dynamics of molecules using photonics.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 29849155.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41586-018-0152-9.
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Abstract
Advances in control techniques for vibrational quantum states in molecules present new challenges for modelling such systems, which could be amenable to quantum simulation methods. Here, by exploiting a natural mapping between vibrations in molecules and photons in waveguides, we demonstrate a reprogrammable photonic chip as a versatile simulation platform for a range of quantum dynamic behaviour in different molecules. We begin by simulating the time evolution of vibrational excitations in the harmonic approximation for several four-atom molecules, including H<sub>2</sub>CS, SO<sub>3</sub>, HNCO, HFHF, N<sub>4</sub> and P<sub>4</sub>. We then simulate coherent and dephased energy transport in the simplest model of the peptide bond in proteins-N-methylacetamide-and simulate thermal relaxation and the effect of anharmonicities in H<sub>2</sub>O. Finally, we use multi-photon statistics with a feedback control algorithm to iteratively identify quantum states that increase a particular dissociation pathway of NH<sub>3</sub>. These methods point to powerful new simulation tools for molecular quantum dynamics and the field of femtochemistry.