Models of complex dynamical systems like the Earth’s climate often involve large numbers of uncertain parameters. Comprehensive exploration of the parameter space is typically prohibitive due to excessive computational costs, and systematic gradient-based parameter optimization is not feasible because such models are typically not differentiable. This is especially problematic in cases where the models intend to describe highly nonlinear and possibly abrupt dynamics, where sensitivity to parameter changes is high. Components of Earth’s climate system, such as the North Atlantic Overturning Circulation, the polar ice sheets, or the Amazon rainforest, are at risk of undergoing critical transitions in response to anthropogenic climate change. However, estimates of the critical forcing thresholds are highly uncertain because the parameter spaces of complex climate models cannot be fully explored. Concerns have been raised that the above Earth system components are too stable in state-of-the-art models. Here, we introduce a method for efficient, systematic, and objective calibration of dynamical complex system models, targeted at adjusting system stability. Given a number of physical or observational constraints, our method moves the system in a direction where the system loses or gains stability, guided by indicators of “critical slowing down”. In contrast to a brute force approach, where the computational cost would exponentially increase with the number of parameters, our method scales polynomially and thus evades the curse of dimensionality. We successfully apply our method to a conceptual double-fold bifurcation model and a physically plausible reduced-order model of the global ocean circulation. Our method can efficiently adjust stability biases across a range of complex system models, helping to reveal hidden instabilities and resulting state transitions they induce. In particular, it can help us to explore and improve the representation of key multistable components of the Earth system in climate models.

Considerable effort continues to be devoted to the exploration of next-generation high-$\kappa$ materials that combine a high dielectric constant with a wide band gap. However, machine learning (ML)-based virtual screening has remained challenging, primarily due to the low accuracy in predicting the ionic contribution to the dielectric tensor, which dominates the dielectric performance of high-$\kappa$ materials. We propose a joint ML model that predicts Born effective charges using an equivariant graph neural network, and phonon properties using a highly accurate pretrained ML potential. The ionic dielectric tensor is then computed analytically from these quantities. This approach significantly improves the accuracy of ionic contribution. Using the proposed model, we successfully identified 31 novel high-$\kappa$ oxides from a screening pool of over 8000 candidates.

Nonlinear phenomena underpin a broad array of technologies, from electronic frequency mixers and harmonic generation to parametric amplification and optical frequency doubling. Conventional schemes for generating microwave frequency combs are constrained by intrinsic material or junction properties that require high driving powers. Here, we overcome these limitations via phase-transition physics. We show that a hybrid quantum system—composed of a solid-state spin ensemble and a nonlinear oscillator—exhibits a distinct bistable phase transition point (BP) where system response becomes both highly enhanced and nonlinear. The nonlinearity around the BP is higher order than other phase transitions, such as exceptional points, critically producing high-order frequency response which enhances nonlinear processes. Approaching the BP, we demonstrate a frequency comb with a record number of teeth at unprecedentedly low driving powers, surpassing previous results using magnonic systems and traditional diode-based approaches. These findings highlight the potential of hybrid quantum systems in advancing high-performance frequency manipulation.

Electromagnetic fields induce electronic transitions, generate currents, and fundamentally alter quantum states of matter through strong light-matter interactions. As one established route, Floquet engineering provides a powerful framework to dress electronic states with time-periodic fields, giving rise to quasistationary Floquet states. With increasing field strength, nonperturbative responses of the dressed states emerge, yet their nonlinear dynamics remain challenging to interpret. In this work, we explore the emergence of nonadiabatic Landau-Zener transitions among Floquet states in Cu(111) under intense optical fields. With increasing field strength, we reveal a transition from perturbative dressing to a regime where nonadiabatic tunneling among Floquet states dominate the electronic dynamics. These insights are obtained through interferometrically time-resolved multiphoton photoemission spectroscopy, which serves as a sensitive probe of transient Floquet state dynamics. Numerical simulations and the theory of instantaneous Floquet states allow us to directly examine real-time excitation pathways in this nonperturbative photoemission regime. Our results clarify different light-dressing regimes in materials and provide microscopic insight relevant to ultrafast light wave electronics.

Traveling-wave parametric amplifiers (TWPAs) have attracted much attention for their broadband amplification and near-quantum-limited noise performance. TWPAs are nonreciprocal by nature providing gain for forward-propagating signals and transmission line losses for backward traveling waves. This intrinsic nonreciprocity is insufficient to protect sensitive quantum devices from backaction due to noise from warmer amplification stages in practical systems, and requires the use of bulky cryogenic isolators. We present a multistage TWPA (mTWPA) that addresses this limitation by achieving passive in-band reverse isolation alongside near-quantum-limited noise performance. The multistage architecture consists of two mode conversion stages and a reflectionless high-pass filter that provides the passive isolation. Experimental measurements of a prototype mTWPA demonstrated 20 dB of forward gain across a 1.6 GHz bandwidth and greater than 35 dB of reverse isolation. Noise measurements indicate performance at 1.7 times the quantum limit. This demonstrates that the increased complexity of a multistage TWPA design does not lead to significant added noise. The designed distribution of gain across the stages is engineered to minimize internal amplifier noise at the input, and we propose further optimization strategies in redistribution of the gain between the stages. This level of isolation mitigates noise from warmer amplification stages, matching the performance of conventional isolators. The passive reverse isolation of the mTWPA, allows for the amplifier to operate in pulsed mode where the amplifier is off during qubit gate operations and is turned on during readout allowing for an isolator free scalable readout architecture.

Quantum measurements affect the state of the observed systems via backaction. While projective measurements extract maximal classical information, they drastically alter the system. In contrast, indirect measurements balance information extraction with the degree of disturbance. Considering the prevalent use of projective measurements in quantum computing and communication protocols, the potential benefits of indirect measurements in these fields remain largely unexplored. In this work, we show that measurement backaction, a purely quantum effect, can be harnessed within the quantum reservoir computing framework to enhance temporal data processing. Incorporating indirect measurements leads to improved execution-time scaling and overall performance. Our results reveal that carefully optimizing the measurement strength can significantly improve the quantum reservoir computing algorithm performance. Furthermore, our approach demonstrates improved memory performance when compared with state-of-the-art classical-feedback protocols. This work provides a comprehensive and practical recipe to promote the implementation of indirect-measurement-based protocols in quantum reservoir computing. Moreover, our findings motivate further exploration of experimental protocols that leverage the backaction effects of indirect measurements.

Collisions between ultracold calcium monohydroxide (CaOH) molecules are realized and studied. Inelastic collision rate constants are measured for CaOH prepared in ground and excited vibrational states, and the electric field dependence of these rates is measured for molecules in single quantum states of the parity-doubled bending mode. Theoretical calculations of collision rate coefficients are performed and found to agree with measured values. The lowest collisional loss rates are for states with repulsive long-range potentials that shield ultracold molecules from loss channels at short distance. These results unveil the collisional behavior of parity-doublet molecules in the ultracold regime and lay the foundation for future experiments to evaporatively cool polyatomic molecules to quantum degeneracy.

The restricted Boltzmann machine (RBM) is a neural network based on the Ising model, well known for its ability to learn probability distributions and stochastically generate new content. However, the high computational cost of Gibbs sampling in content generation tasks imposes significant bottlenecks on electronic implementations. Here, we propose a photonic restricted Boltzmann machine (PRBM) that leverages photonic computing to accelerate Gibbs sampling, enabling efficient content generation. By introducing an efficient encoding method, the PRBM eliminates the need for computationally intensive matrix decomposition and reduces the computational complexity of a single dot product in Gibbs sampling from $O(N)$ to $O(1)$. Moreover, with the advantage of photonic computation of non–von Neumann computing architecture, we physically encode the model parameters onto the phases of different wavelength light fields on a spatial light modulator, substantially enhancing computation efficiency for large-scale RBMs. We experimentally validate the photonic-accelerated Gibbs sampling by simulating a two-dimensional Ising model, where the observed phase transition temperature closely matches the theoretical predictions. Beyond physics-inspired tasks, the PRBM demonstrates strong performance in generating and restoring diverse content, including images and temporal sequences. The scalability and reduced training cost of the PRBM framework underscore its potential as a promising pathway for advancing photonic computing in generative artificial intelligence.

Secure and reliable certification of quantum resources is a fundamental challenge in the advancement of next-generation quantum technologies, particularly as devices become more complex and integrated into practical applications, where parts of the system may be untrusted or inaccessible by users. Addressing this challenge requires certification methods that rely on minimal assumptions and limited trust while still faithfully and reliably verifying the quantum resources in question. For infinite-dimensional bosonic systems, existing certification methods rely on fully trusted and well-calibrated measurement systems, leaving significant security vulnerabilities open. In this work, we present the first experimental demonstration of measurement-device-independent (MDI) certification schemes for infinite-dimensional bosonic systems, where the certification process is conducted using entirely untrusted measurement devices and assuming only the trusted preparation of coherent states. Specifically, we implement schemes for the MDI certification of continuous-variable (CV) entanglement and the operation of an elementary optical CV quantum memory. We leverage techniques of Bayesian metrology and exploit the practicality and accessibility of Gaussian quantum optics to achieve secure and efficient certification. These results demonstrate the potential of the MDI framework to enhance trust in quantum technologies with applications in quantum communication and quantum computing.

Driving a quantum system out of equilibrium while preserving its subtle quantum mechanical correlations on large scales presents a major challenge, both fundamentally and for technological applications. At its core, this challenge is pinpointed by the question of how quantum effects can persist at asymptotic scales, analogous to quantum critical points in equilibrium. In this work, we construct such a scenario using fermions as building blocks. These fermions undergo an absorbing-to-absorbing state transition between two topologically distinct and quantum-correlated dark states. Starting from a microscopic, interacting Lindbladian, we derive an effective Lindblad-Keldysh field theory in which critical fermions couple to a bosonic bath with hydrodynamic fluctuations associated with particle number conservation. A key feature of this field theory is an emergent symmetry that protects the purity of the fermions’ state even in the presence of the thermal bath. We quantitatively characterize the critical point using a leading-order expansion around the upper critical dimension, thereby establishing the nonequilibrium universality class of fermions. The symmetry protection mechanism, which exhibits parallels to the problem of directed percolation, suggests a pathway toward a broader class of robust, universal quantum phenomena in fermionic systems.

Moiré semiconductors offer flat bands where Coulomb interactions and band topology intertwine, while the interlayer coupling plays a core role in the formation of moiré potential. However, the limited interlayer coupling strength and the lack of efficient tuning methods hinder further exploration of correlated phenomena in moiré semiconductors. We introduce a cryogenic dual-gated diamond-anvil platform using helium as a pressure medium, enabling reversible hydrostatic tuning together with magneto-optical spectroscopy in twisted bilayer ${\mathrm{WSe}}_2$. Pressure enhances the moiré potential, redshifts excitons, and stabilizes Stoner ferromagnetism otherwise absent at a 3.1° twist. Simultaneously, the half-filled $C=1$ Chern insulating state strengthens, exhibiting a reduced saturation field. Moreover, we observed a topological phase transition from Chern insulator to Mott insulator at around 2 GPa. First-principles calculations reveal that a $\mathrm{\Gamma }-K$ valence band maximum switching drives this transition by converting an Ising-like topological $K$-valley miniband into a spin-degenerate trivial $\mathrm{\Gamma }$ miniband. Our findings demonstrate hydrostatic pressure as a powerful, continuous control axis for correlated magnetism and topological band engineering in moiré materials.

Many-body systems that saturate the quantum bound on chaos are attracting interest across a wide range of fields. Notable examples include the Sachdev-Ye-Kitaev model and its variations, all characterized by some form or randomness and all-to-all couplings. Here, we study many-body quantum chaos in a quantum impurity model showing non-Fermi-liquid physics, the overscreened multichannel $SU(N)$ Kondo model. We exactly compute the low-temperature behavior of the out-of-time order correlator in the limit of large $N$ and large number of channels, $K$, at a fixed ratio $\gamma =K/N$. Because of strong correlations at the impurity site, the spin fractionalizes in auxiliary fermions and bosons. We show that all the degrees of freedom of our theory acquire a Lyapunov exponent that is linear in temperature as $T\to 0$, with a prefactor that depends on $\gamma$. Remarkably, for $N=K$, the impurity spin displays maximal chaos, while bosons and fermions only reach half of the maximal Lyapunov exponent. Our results highlight two key features: a nondisordered model that is maximally chaotic due to strong correlations at its boundary, with the maximal chaos appearing in a composite gauge-invariant operator, the impurity spin, and not in the auxiliary single-particle degrees of freedom.

Inhomogeneous domain nucleation and stochastic motion of the domain wall (DW) during the polarization switching process in conventional ferroelectrics introduce a spectrum of intricate kinetic challenges for the reliable and precise manipulation of polarization states, a prerequisite for many ferroelectric implementations. Combining deep-learning-assisted molecular dynamics simulations, microscopic-scale in situ observations, and device-scale electrical measurements, it reveals that sliding ferroelectrics inherently circumvent these issues, with an intrinsic domain-nucleation-free polarization reversal. Using $3R\text{−}{\mathrm{MoS}}_2$ as a model system, we demonstrate that DW motion occurs along a well-defined 1D pathway in a collective manner, without domain nucleation. Leveraging this predictable domain dynamics, we demonstrate deterministic multistate polarization switching, achieving remarkable precision and repeatability with a variation coefficient of less than 0.2%, 10 times improved over conventional ferroelectrics. This work provides valuable insights into the unique kinetics of DW motion in sliding ferroelectrics and offers opportunities for ferroelectric multistate devices with ultraprecision control.

The Mpemba effect originally referred to the observation that, under certain thermalizing dynamics, initially hotter samples can cool faster than colder ones. This effect has since been generalized to other anomalous relaxation behaviors even beyond classical domains, such as symmetry restoration in quantum systems. This work demonstrates that resource theories, widely employed in information theory, provide a unified organizing principle to frame Mpemba physics. We show how the conventional thermal Mpemba effect arises naturally from the resource theory of athermality, while its symmetry-restoring counterpart is fully captured by the resource theories of asymmetry. Leveraging the framework of modes of asymmetry, we demonstrate that the Mpemba effect due to symmetry restoration is governed by the initial overlap with the slowest symmetry-restoring mode, mirroring the role of the slowest Liouvillian eigenmode in thermal Mpemba dynamics. Through this resource-theoretical formalism, we uncover the connection between these seemingly disparate effects and show that the dynamics of thermalization naturally splits into a symmetry-respecting and a symmetry-breaking term.

The infinite-layer compound ${\mathrm{CaCoO}}_2$ provides a compelling platform to explore how local orbital distortions evolve into collective electronic order. Using resonant soft x-ray scattering (RSXS) and its time-resolved counterpart (tr-RSXS), we reveal a cooperative coupling between two intertwined orders at the same in-plane wave vector, $q\approx (1/4,1/4,0)$, comprising a quasi-two-dimensional orbital order associated with the distorted ${\mathrm{Co}}_{(1)}$ sites and a quasi-three-dimensional trimerlike charge order stabilized through Co-O-Ca hybridization. The charge-sensitive component exhibits a uniform relaxation time of $\sim 400\mathrm{fs}$ ($391\pm 5\mathrm{fs}$) across multiple Co resonances, evidencing a collective charge response. A comparable timescale observed in the orbital order associated with the highly distorted ${\mathrm{Co}}_{(1)}$ sites indicates that this collective behavior naturally originates from the same orbital framework that mediates both charge and orbital degrees of freedom. Together, these findings establish ${\mathrm{CaCoO}}_2$ as a model system in which Jahn-Teller distortions, orbital hybridization, and geometric frustration cooperate to form molecular trimer units that dictate the macroscopic electronic behavior.

Many quantum networking applications require efficient photonic interfaces to quantum memories which can be produced at scale and with high yield. Synthetic diamond offers unique potential for the implementation of this technology as it hosts color centers which retain coherent optical interfaces and long spin coherence times in nanophotonic structures. Here, we report a technique enabling wafer-scale processing of thin-film diamond that combines ion implantation and membrane liftoff, high-quality overgrowth, targeted color center implantation, and serial, high-throughput thermocompression bonding with yields approaching unity. The deterministic deposition of thin diamond membranes onto semiconductor substrates facilitates consistent integration of photonic crystal cavities with silicon-vacancy (SiV) quantum memories. We demonstrate reliable, strong coupling of SiVs to photons with cooperativities approaching 50. Furthermore, we show that photonic crystal cavities can be reliably fabricated across several membranes bonded to the same handling chip. Our platform enables modular fabrication where the photonic layer can be integrated with functionalized substrates featuring electronic control lines such as coplanar waveguides for microwave delivery. Finally, we implement passive optical packaging with sub-decibel insertion loss. Together, these advances pave the way to the scalable assembly of optically addressable quantum memory arrays which are a key building block for modular photonic quantum interconnects.

Anyons are two-dimensional particles with fractional exchange statistics that emerge as elementary excitations of fractional quantum Hall phases. Experimentally, their exchange statistics can be measured in the edge-state Fabry-Pérot interferometer, wherein the presence of $N_{qp}$ localized anyons contributes a phase $N_{qp}{\theta }_a$ to the interference pattern where ${\theta }_a$ is twice the exchange phase. Here we report the observation of large, hysteretic phase jumps in a monolayer graphene Fabry-Pérot interferometer at $\nu =1/3$. When the filling factor is increased from $\nu <1/3$ toward the center of the plateau, we observe phase slips with magnitude $\mathrm{\Delta }\theta \approx 2\pi /3$, consistent with the addition of individual quasiparticles to the interferometer bulk. These phase slips occur as instantaneous jumps in the interference signal, with intervals between the jumps indicating quasiparticle equilibration times exceeding 20 min. We use this long timescale to investigate the effect of changes in interferometer area $A_I$ and $N_{qp}$ independently at fixed magnetic field, revealing a striking memory effect in the phase slip magnitude. In particular, as the $\nu =1/3$ plateau is approached from higher filling, we observed phase slips with $\mathrm{\Delta }\theta$ significantly larger than $2\pi /3$ over the same range of gate voltage where quantized jumps are seen for increasing $\nu$. We discuss this asymmetry in terms of bulk-edge coupling of quasiparticles localized near the edge or in the bulk, and argue that this effect can be qualitatively reconciled with theoretical expectations for strongly interacting quasiparticles in the presence of weak disorder and strongly nonequilibrium charge dynamics. Besides providing a replication of interferometric measurements sensitive to ${\theta }_a$, our results highlight the key role played by charge dynamics on signatures of the anyon phase, and demonstrate that fractional quasiparticles can be indefinitely localized in nonequilibrium configurations.

Non-Abelian topological phases, which go beyond traditional Abelian topological band theory, are garnering increasing attention. This is further spurred by periodic driving, leading to predictions of many novel multigap Floquet topological phases, including anomalous Euler and Dirac string phases induced by non-Abelian Floquet braiding, as well as Floquet non-Abelian topological insulators (FNTIs) that exhibit multifold bulk-edge correspondence. Here, we report the first experimental realization of anomalous FNTIs, which demonstrate topological edge modes in all three gaps despite having a trivial bulk charge. Concretely, we construct an experimentally feasible one-dimensional three-band Floquet model and implement it in acoustics by integrating time-periodic coupling circuits to static acoustic crystals. Furthermore, we observe counterintuitive topological interface modes in the domain wall formed by an anomalous FNTI and its counterpart with swapped driving sequences—modes previously inaccessible in Floquet Abelian systems. Our work paves the way for further experimental exploration of the uncharted nonequilibrium topological physics.

Nuclear spins near group-IV defects in diamond are promising candidates for quantum memories in quantum network applications. Here, we demonstrate high-fidelity control of a single ${}^{13}\mathrm{C}$ nuclear spin coupled to a tin-vacancy center in diamond. We perform a combination of optical and microwave pumping to achieve initialization into a combined electronuclear spin state with a fidelity of 99.74(3)%. Harnessing a superconducting waveguide for radio-frequency driving, we demonstrate precise nuclear-spin control: Ramsey measurements reveal a coherence time of $T_2^{*}=1.5(1)\mathrm{ms}$, and we use dynamical decoupling to extend it to 1.35(3) s. We perform randomized benchmarking, yielding a single-qubit gate fidelity of 99.92(1)%. This demonstrates a coherent spin-photon system with promising properties for quantum network nodes.

We study superconductivity in paramagnetic and ferromagnetically ordered phases in a two-dimensional electron system with parabolic fermionic dispersion and short-range repulsive interaction. In the paramagnetic phase, we find that a weak momentum dependence of a paramagnon propagator parametrically reduces the onset temperature for the pairing compared to that in phenomenological theories, which assume a strong dispersion of a paramagnon, and also changes the topology of the gap function. In the ferromagnetic phase, we show that the order instantly polarizes low-energy fermionic excitations. We derive the fully renormalized pairing interaction between low-energy fermions, mediated by two transverse Goldstone modes, and show that it is attractive in a spatially odd channel. The pairing temperature in the ferromagnetic phase is found to be a fraction of the Fermi energy, significantly larger than in the paramagnetic phase near the transition. Our results are relevant for understanding superconductivity in proximity to itinerant ferromagnetism in multivalley graphene systems, particularly the ones with full valley and spin polarization.