Coherent coupling of two dopants in a silicon nanowire probed by Landau-Zener-Stückelberg interferometry.

ABSTRACT

We report on microwave-driven coherent electron transfer between two coupled donors embedded in a silicon nanowire. By increasing the microwave frequency we observe a transition from incoherent to coherent driving revealed by the emergence of a Landau-Zener-Stückelberg quantum interference pattern of the measured current through the donors. This interference pattern is fitted to extract characteristic parameters of the double-donor system. In particular we estimate a charge dephasing time of 0.3±0.1 ns, comparable to other types of charge-based two-level systems. The demonstrated coherent coupling between two dopants is an important step towards donor-based quantum computing devices in silicon.