Programmable Fermionic Quantum Simulation on a Hybrid Tweezer-Lattice Platform

Recent advances in the experimental control of complex many-body systems have enabled increasingly incisive questions about their dynamics, which remain difficult to address using classical computational approaches. Combining approaches from quantum information theory with state-of-the-art quantum simulation techniques can lead to new ways of characterizing itinerant quantum systems more generally. Programmable quantum simulation using ultracold fermions offers a powerful approach for pursuing these directions; however, the controlled preparation of arbitrary initial states, together with the realization of rapid experimental cycles has remained a central challenge.

 

Here, we present an approach based on optical tweezer arrays for assembling arbitrary product states of fermions with high degree of programmability. We demonstrate key technical capabilities, including deterministic preparation of low-entropy fermionic configurations, parallel spin-resolved control, and single-exposure detection with site- and spin-resolution on microsecond timescales. These tools enable the construction of tailored initial states that extend beyond traditionally accessible band-insulators and related configurations. We discuss how combining tweezer-based assembly with tunable lattice potentials provides a versatile pathway for exploring non-equilibrium dynamics, quantum magnetism, and interesting many-body phases, and highlight the recent results from the experiment.