In a groundbreaking research study, a collaborative team of scientists has uncovered the presence of multiple Majorana zero modes (MZMs) within a single vortex of the superconducting topological crystalline insulator SnTe. Led by Prof. Junwei Liu from HKUST and Prof. Jinfeng Jia and Prof. Yaoyi Li from SJTU, this discovery, recently published in Nature, holds immense potential for advancing the development of fault-tolerant quantum computers.
Majorana zero modes are zero-energy quasiparticles in superconductors that exhibit non-Abelian statistics. This means that their braiding sequences lead to different outcomes, unlike conventional particles such as electrons or photons. This unique characteristic of MZMs makes them highly resilient to local perturbations, thus making them an ideal candidate for robust fault-tolerant quantum computation.
While significant progress has been made in creating artificial topological superconductors, manipulating and braiding MZMs has proven to be extremely challenging due to their spatial separation. This separation complicates the movements required for braiding and hybridization, presenting a major bottleneck in the realization of fault-tolerant quantum computers.
The research team took a novel approach by leveraging the crystal-symmetry-protected MZMs in SnTe to overcome these obstacles. By exploiting the unique properties of these MZMs, the team was able to control the coupling between multiple MZMs without the need for real-space movements or strong magnetic fields. This innovative strategy paved the way for the successful observation and hybridization of multiple MZMs within a single vortex.
The experimental group at SJTU observed significant changes in the zero-bias peak, a key indicator of MZMs, in the SnTe/Pb heterostructure under tilted magnetic fields. Subsequent extensive numerical simulations by the theoretical team at HKUST confirmed that these anisotropic responses were indeed due to crystal-symmetry-protected MZMs. By utilizing advanced computational methods, the team was able to simulate large vortex systems with millions of orbitals, enabling further exploration of novel properties in vortex systems beyond crystal-symmetry-protected MZMs.
This groundbreaking research opens up a new frontier in the detection and manipulation of crystal-symmetry-protected multiple MZMs. The findings of this study lay the groundwork for experimental demonstrations of non-Abelian statistics and the development of novel topological qubits and quantum gates based on these unique quasiparticles. The potential implications of this research for the field of quantum computing are vast, with the promise of more efficient and robust quantum systems on the horizon.
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