Optimal control of superconducting N-level quantum systems

We consider a current-biased dc SQUID in the presence of an applied time-dependent bias current or magnetic flux. The phase dynamics of such a Josephson device is equivalent to that of a quantum particle trapped in a 1D anharmonic potential, subject to external time-dependent control fields, i.e. a driven multilevel quantum system. The problem of finding the required time-dependent control field that will steer the system from a given initial state to a desired final state at a specified final time is formulated in the framework of optimal-control theory. Using the spectral filter technique, we show that the selected optimal field which induces a coherent population transfer between quantum states is represented by a carrier signal having a constant frequency but which is time-varied both in amplitude and phase. The sensitivity of the optimal solution to parameter perturbations is also addressed. Copyright (C) EPLA, 2009