A Robust Strontium Tweezer Apparatus for Quantum Computing

Neutral atoms for quantum computing applications show promise in terms of scalability and connectivity. We demonstrate the realization of a versatile apparatus capable of stochastically loading a 5x5 array of optical tweezers with single ⁸⁸Sr atoms featuring flexible magnetic field control and excellent optical access. A custom-designed oven, spin-flip Zeeman slower, and deflection stage produce a controlled flux of Sr directed to the science chamber. In the science chamber, featuring a vacuum pressure of 3 times 10^-11 mbar, the Sr is cooled using two laser cooling stages, resulting in sim 3 times 10⁵ atoms at a temperature of 5(1) μK. The optical tweezers feature a 1/e² waist of 0.81(2) μm, and loaded atoms can be imaged with a fidelity of sim 0.997 and a survival probability of 0.99^+0.01_-0.02. The atomic array presented here forms the core of a full-stack quantum computing processor targeted for quantum chemistry computational problems.