Towards a large scale fully-programmable trapped-ion quantum spin simulator*

A trapped-ion quantum simulator can simulate models of quantum many-particle systems that may be otherwise intractable, such as frustrated spin systems and fundamental forces in high energy physics. Our trapping architecture is based on a multi-segmented `blade electrode' Paul trap, capable of producing anharmonic confining potentials to trap and control a long chain ($>$50) of Ytterbium ions with near-uniform spacing. A holographic optical addressing system is integrated for aberration-corrected optical engineering, providing the capability to exert programmable and dynamic control over non-trivial many-body Hamiltonians at the level of individual ion-spins and interactions between them. Leveraging powerful modern machine-learning tools [1], the quantum simulator can in principle be programmed to realize an arbitrarily connected spin network, allowing the simulation of dynamical spin systems on arbitrary lattice geometries in higher dimensions. \\ \text{[1]} Yi Hong Teoh , Marina Drygala, Roger G. Melko, and Rajibul Islam, \textit{Quantum Science and Technology} \textbf{5}, 024001 (2020)