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Abstract
Quantum simulation with ultracold atoms offers a powerful route to exploring complex quantum systems that are beyond the reach of classical computation. Two major experimental platforms have driven progress in this field: degenerate quantum gases in optical lattices, which enable the study of many-body dynamics governed by Hubbard-type Hamiltonians; and reconfigurable Rydberg atom arrays, which provide programmable geometries for quantum information processing.
This thesis presents the development of a new experimental platform, the Quantum Matter Synthesizer (QMS), which integrates the strengths of both approaches by combining dynamic tweezer arrays with optical lattices. The envisioned QMS experiment contains three main steps. First, we stochastically load a thermal atomic gas into a two-dimensional optical lattice, and perform site-resolved imaging to determine the initial atom occupancy. Second, dynamic optical tweezers are applied to rearrange the atomic distribution into a desired target configuration. Third, after the rearrangement, we perform a second imaging to verify the resulting atom distribution, and subsequently cool the atoms to their motional ground states to enable coherent many-body dynamics.
This thesis presents the design and characterization of the QMS, with emphasis on the two key capabilities: site-resolved imaging and integration of dynamic optical tweezers. We highlight the dual-objective microscope setup that demonstrates excellent mechanical stability. We detail the implementation of optical trapping using a triangular lattice in conjunction with a light sheet, and fluorescence imaging based on degenerate Raman sideband cooling. This configuration enables high-fidelity, diffraction-limited, site-resolved imaging of atoms in the lattice. We also describe the implementation of an innovative scheme for real-time control of optical tweezers using digital micromirror devices (DMD), operating at a binary pattern refresh rate of 2.88 kHz. We present the calibration procedure for addressing individual lattice sites with DMD-generated patterns, along with initial results demonstrating controlled atom transport using dynamically shifting tweezers. The future integration of ground-state cooling will allow rapid and flexible initialization of many-body quantum states, enhancing preparation and manipulation of strongly correlated atomic systems through independent control of single atoms.