16 ATOMIC IONS SIMULATE A QUANTUM ANTIFERROMAGNET
Frustration crops up throughout nature when conflicting
constraints on a physical system compete with one another. The way nature
resolves these conflicts often leads to exotic phases of matter that are poorly
understood. This week’s issue of Science Magazine features new results from the
research group of Christopher Monroe at the JQI, where they explored how to
frustrate a quantum magnet comprised of sixteen atomic ions – to date the
largest ensemble of qubits to perform a simulation of quantum matter.