New 2D quantum materials and hybrid circuit quantum electrodynamics
Quantum materials and superconducting quantum circuits have each recently made significant impact in fundamental and applied physics, yet they have largely developed as independent fields. Both are now mature enough to combine and provide opportunities to uncover novel physics. My talk is based on two results relevant to this category of “hybrid quantum systems”. First, I will present our discovery of superconductor and time-reversal-invariant topological insulator phases in the 2D material monolayer WTe2, which we accessed via the electrostatic field-effect. Second, I will highlight our demonstration of the first Andreev spin qubit, which was made possible by a superconductor-semiconductor quantum circuit. This experiment provides an excellent example of how the circuit quantum electrodynamics architecture can be used to reveal new phenomena in fermionic many-body systems. Both projects open paths to new types of experiments on Majorana zero modes and, possibly, the first observation of elusive non-abelian statistics. More broadly, we envision tailor-made hybrid superconducting circuits and devices for the exploration of topological physics with 2D materials.