Splitting and Connecting Singlets in Atomic Quantum Circuits

Gate operations composed in quantum circuits form the basis for digital quantum simulation and quantum processing. While two-qubit gates generally operate on nearest neighbors, many circuits require nonlocal connectivity and necessitate some form of quantum information transport. Yet, connecting distant nodes of a quantum processor still remains challenging, particularly for neutral atoms in optical lattices. Here, we create singlet pairs of two magnetic states of fermionic potassium-40 atoms in an optical lattice and use a bidirectional topological Thouless pump to transport, coherently split, and separate the pairs, as well as to demonstrate interaction between them via tuneable <a:math xmlns:a="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <a:mrow> <a:mo stretchy="false">(</a:mo> <a:mi mathsize="small">SWAP</a:mi> <a:msup> <a:mrow> <a:mo stretchy="false">)</a:mo> </a:mrow> <a:mrow> <a:mi>α</a:mi> </a:mrow> </a:msup> </a:mrow> </a:math> -gate operations. We achieve pumping with a single-shift fidelity of 99.78(3)% over 50 lattice sites and split the pairs within a decoherence-free subspace. Gates are implemented by superexchange interaction, allowing us to produce interwoven atomic singlets. For readout, we apply a magnetic field gradient, resulting in single- and multifrequency singlet-triplet oscillations. Our work shows avenues to create complex patterns of entanglement and new approaches to quantum processing, sensing, and atom interferometry.