Applications of nanomechanical lattices: from dynamics to computation

Nanomechanical systems have been studied for over 20 years with most efforts only exploring a single resonant device at a time. Due to the current limitations in nanoscale fabrication, it proves nearly impossible to achieve the uniformity required to study even basic lattice models using nanomechanics. Here I will describe an experiment based on piezoelectric nanomechanical systems which achieves strong uniformity of lattice parameters. Amazingly, this experimental system is able to spontaneously generate exotic symmetry breaking states akin to those found in spin systems in condensed matter. I will also describe how the experimental architecture could be used for novel computational schemes. Finally, I will describe a proposed effort to use piezoelectric nanomechanics in quantum computational architectures.

Host
Yoonseok Lee