A Feedback Control Method to Maintain the Amplitude of the RF Signal Applied to Ion Traps

For high-fidelity quantum operations in ion traps, it is important to maintain the secular frequency of the trapped ions at a constant value. The radial secular frequency is proportional to the amplitude of the radio frequency (RF) signal applied to ion traps. Owing to the changes in the ambient temperature of a helical resonator and the minute vibration of the optical table, the amplitude can vary. Recently, a method for reducing the fluctuation in the RF signal amplitude, using a commercial universal proportional-plus-integral (PI) controller, has been introduced, which, in turn, reduces the secular frequency drift of the trapped ions. The method improves the capability to maintain the secular frequency at a constant value. However, the structure of the controller is fixed; thus, the control method cannot be changed to suit different experimental conditions, and the different feedback configuration cannot be implemented to increase the resolution. In this paper, we develop a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based feedback controller that allows the implementation of various automatic control methods and feedback configurations. In our experiments, the fluctuation in the amplitude of the RF signal was 1.806% using a commercial universal PI controller. The fluctuation was reduced to 0.099% using the developed FPGA-based PI controller, and to 0.102% using the developed FPGA-based lag compensator. By employing the developed FPGA control method, many other automating control methods can be applied to achieve a stable and high-performance control of the secular frequency.

Automated summary

This study introduces an FPGA-based feedback controller for reducing RF signal amplitude fluctuations and improving control precision of axial secular frequency.