We demonstrate the use of a single trapped ion as a sensor to probe electric-field noise from interchangeable test surfaces. As proof of principle, we measure the magnitude and distance dependence of electric-field noise from two ion-trap-like samples with patterned Au electrodes. This trapped-ion sensor could be combined with other surface characterization tools to help elucidate the mechanisms that give rise to electric-field noise from ion-trap surfaces. Such noise presents a significant hurdle for performing large-scale trapped-ion quantum computations.
@article{arxiv.2102.00965,
title = {Measurement of electric-field noise from interchangeable samples with a trapped-ion sensor},
author = {Kyle S. McKay and Dustin A. Hite and Philip D. Kent and Shlomi Kotler and Dietrich Leibfried and Daniel H. Slichter and Andrew C. Wilson and David P. Pappas},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2102.00965},
year = {2022}
}