• Accepted Paper

Gate-based readout and cooling of neutral atoms

Richard Bing-Shiun Tsai, Lewis R. B. Picard, Xiangkai Sun, Yuan Le, Kon H. Leung, and Manuel Endres

Phys. Rev. Lett. - Accepted 9 November, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/8ncv-2mcx

Abstract

Neutral atom arrays have seen tremendous progress in quantum simulation, quantum metrology, and fault-tolerant quantum computing. However, hardware constraints such as atom loss and heating remain significant challenges. In this work, we introduce a comprehensive ancilla-based toolbox for optical tweezer experiments that utilizes high-fidelity Rydberg entangling gates and ancilla atoms to mitigate these physical limitations. First, we demonstrate repeated ancilla-based atom readout, achieving improved readout fidelity over successive rounds with minimal perturbation to data atoms. Second, leveraging the quantized motional states in tweezer-trapped strontium atoms, we transduce quantum information from the electronic to the motional manifold. This enables us to perform midcircuit ancilla-based atom loss detection in a coherence-preserving fashion. Finally, we demonstrate algorithmic cooling, a circuit-based sequence that deterministically cools data atoms by transferring their motional entropy to the electronic states of ancilla atoms. We observe a marked reduction in the atomic temperature of data atoms. These tools offer a pathway to continuous operation in tweezer clocks and complement recent developments in continuous reloading experiments.

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