Pontus Laurell
Current Organizations / Institutes
The organizations/institutes from the scholar's latest article
Previous Organizations / Institutes
The organizations / institutes from the scholar's other articles in the past ten years
Research Subjects
Research Interests
Pontus Laurell has a total of 120 co-authors. Here are the top co-authors by number of shared publications:
- Allen Scheie
Los Alamos National Laboratory
10 shared publications - David Alan Tennant
University of Tennessee
10 shared publications - Elbio Dagotto
University of Tennessee
10 shared publications - Gregory A. Fiete
Northeastern University
10 shared publications - Satoshi Okamoto
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
10 shared publications Elbio Dagotto
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
7 shared publications
Latest Publications
- Open Access
- 21 September 2026
- Published by Springer Nature in npj Quantum Materials
Simulation of topological X-gates via braiding of Majorana zero modes in an interacting quantum-dot system
Recent advances in quantum dot platforms have opened a new platform for realizing Majorana zero modes (MZMs) and simulating topological quantum computation. Here we propose an experimentally feasible setup for implementing topological $$\sqrt{X}$$ - and X -quantum gates in an interacting Y -shaped quantum-dot array. The proposed architecture enables both braiding and charge readout through simple fusion operations controlled by gate-tunable potentials. Using many-body time-dependent exact diagonalization, we analyze MZM braiding and fusion dynamics in the presence of nearest-neighbor Coulomb interactions, hopping-pairing mismatch, onsite charge fluctuations, and pairing disorder. We compute diabatic errors, braiding fidelity, and the time- and space-resolved electron and hole components of the local density of states to monitor the braiding process. Our results show that even weak interactions or pairing disorder induce oscillations in the braiding fidelity, thereby setting an upper bound on the braiding speed. Furthermore, we demonstrate that comparing fusion outcomes before and after double braiding provides a direct and experimentally accessible signature of the non-Abelian nature of MZMs in quantum-dot systems.- 21 September 2026
- Published by Springer Nature in npj Quantum Materials
Open AccessSimulation of topological X-gates via braiding of Majorana zero modes in an interacting quantum-dot system
Recent advances in quantum dot platforms have opened a new platform for realizing Majorana zero modes (MZMs) and simulating topological quantum computation. Here we propose an experimentally feasible setup for implementing topological $$\sqrt{X}$$ - and X -quantum gates in an interacting Y -shaped quantum-dot array. The proposed architecture enables both braiding and charge readout through simple fusion operations controlled by gate-tunable potentials. Using many-body time-dependent exact diagonalization, we analyze MZM braiding and fusion dynamics in the presence of nearest-neighbor Coulomb interactions, hopping-pairing mismatch, onsite charge fluctuations, and pairing disorder. We compute diabatic errors, braiding fidelity, and the time- and space-resolved electron and hole components of the local density of states to monitor the braiding process. Our results show that even weak interactions or pairing disorder induce oscillations in the braiding fidelity, thereby setting an upper bound on the braiding speed. Furthermore, we demonstrate that comparing fusion outcomes before and after double braiding provides a direct and experimentally accessible signature of the non-Abelian nature of MZMs in quantum-dot systems. - Open Access
- 4 September 2026
- Published by Springer Nature in Communications Physics
Kinetic obstruction to pairing in the doped Kitaev-Heisenberg two-leg ladder
Doped quantum magnets, especially spin liquids with fractionalized excitations, have long attracted attention as a promising path towards unconventional superconductivity. We investigate the hole-doped Kitaev-Heisenberg ( t – J – K ) model on a two-leg ladder geometry using the density-matrix renormalization group (DMRG). We consider the behavior of the antiferromagnetic Kitaev spin-liquid phase as a function of hopping strength t and doping level. This reveals intriguing pairing tendencies only for $$\frac{t}{K}\lesssim 0.65$$ , consistent with prior results on three-leg ladders, and firmly supports the emerging picture that the physics of doped Kitaev spin liquids strongly depends on the kinetic energy of the doped holes. Analysis of one- and two-hole doping uncovers close links between spatial profiles of the plaquette operator and the charge density. We also construct a doping-dependent phase diagram for antiferromagnetic Heisenberg interactions and intermediate hopping t = 1. Upon doping, the rung-singlet region develops dominant superconducting correlations. Spin-density wave-like behavior is found in the Kitaev limits, and in the stripy phase.- 4 September 2026
- Published by Springer Nature in Communications Physics
Open AccessKinetic obstruction to pairing in the doped Kitaev-Heisenberg two-leg ladder
Doped quantum magnets, especially spin liquids with fractionalized excitations, have long attracted attention as a promising path towards unconventional superconductivity. We investigate the hole-doped Kitaev-Heisenberg ( t – J – K ) model on a two-leg ladder geometry using the density-matrix renormalization group (DMRG). We consider the behavior of the antiferromagnetic Kitaev spin-liquid phase as a function of hopping strength t and doping level. This reveals intriguing pairing tendencies only for $$\frac{t}{K}\lesssim 0.65$$ , consistent with prior results on three-leg ladders, and firmly supports the emerging picture that the physics of doped Kitaev spin liquids strongly depends on the kinetic energy of the doped holes. Analysis of one- and two-hole doping uncovers close links between spatial profiles of the plaquette operator and the charge density. We also construct a doping-dependent phase diagram for antiferromagnetic Heisenberg interactions and intermediate hopping t = 1. Upon doping, the rung-singlet region develops dominant superconducting correlations. Spin-density wave-like behavior is found in the Kitaev limits, and in the stripy phase. - 27 April 2026
- Published by American Physical Society (APS) in Physical Review B
- Vol. 114 (14)
Cooper-pair localization in the magnetic dynamics of a cuprate ladder
- 27 April 2026
- Published by American Physical Society (APS) in Physical Review B
- Vol. 114 (14)
Cooper-pair localization in the magnetic dynamics of a cuprate ladder
- Open Access
- 19 November 2025
- Published by Springer Nature in Communications Physics
- Vol. 8 (1) , 447
Spinon excitations and spin correlations in the one-dimensional quantum magnet β-VOSO4 probed by Raman spectroscopy
- 19 November 2025
- Published by Springer Nature in Communications Physics
- Vol. 8 (1) , 447
Open AccessSpinon excitations and spin correlations in the one-dimensional quantum magnet β-VOSO4 probed by Raman spectroscopy
- Open Access
- 17 July 2025
- Published by Springer Nature in Nature Communications
- Vol. 16 (1) , 6576
Spectrally sharp magnetic excitations above the critical temperature in a frustrated Weyl semimetal
The rare-earth α-pyrochlore iridates are a prospective class of conducting frustrated magnets where electronic correlations, large spin-orbit coupling, and geometrical frustration interplay, leading to a rich set of magnetic and electronic phases. Despite their intriguing properties, the magnetic order and excitations in this fundamental class of topological quantum materials remain poorly understood due to challenges in growing large single crystals and insufficient microscopic information on their temperature-dependent phases. Here, by combining state-of-the-art thin-film synthesis, resonant elastic and inelastic X-ray scattering, spin wave analysis, and dynamical spin susceptibility calculations, we unequivocally reveal the presence of spectrally sharp, gapped magnetic excitations in Y2Ir2O7 that surprisingly persist well above the Néel transition temperature, signaling the presence of a quasi-universal regime connected to fluctuations on frustrated lattices. This finding implies the existence of a highly unusual cooperative paramagnetic (CP) phase above the ordering temperature and offers an explanation for the puzzling high-temperature magnetic behavior observed across the family of metallic pyrochlore crystals. Understanding such magnetic excitations at technologically relevant temperatures opens up possibilities for novel topological spintronic devices.
- 17 July 2025
- Published by Springer Nature in Nature Communications
- Vol. 16 (1) , 6576
Open AccessSpectrally sharp magnetic excitations above the critical temperature in a frustrated Weyl semimetal
The rare-earth α-pyrochlore iridates are a prospective class of conducting frustrated magnets where electronic correlations, large spin-orbit coupling, and geometrical frustration interplay, leading to a rich set of magnetic and electronic phases. Despite their intriguing properties, the magnetic order and excitations in this fundamental class of topological quantum materials remain poorly understood due to challenges in growing large single crystals and insufficient microscopic information on their temperature-dependent phases. Here, by combining state-of-the-art thin-film synthesis, resonant elastic and inelastic X-ray scattering, spin wave analysis, and dynamical spin susceptibility calculations, we unequivocally reveal the presence of spectrally sharp, gapped magnetic excitations in Y2Ir2O7 that surprisingly persist well above the Néel transition temperature, signaling the presence of a quasi-universal regime connected to fluctuations on frustrated lattices. This finding implies the existence of a highly unusual cooperative paramagnetic (CP) phase above the ordering temperature and offers an explanation for the puzzling high-temperature magnetic behavior observed across the family of metallic pyrochlore crystals. Understanding such magnetic excitations at technologically relevant temperatures opens up possibilities for novel topological spintronic devices.
- 25 February 2025
- Published by American Physical Society (APS) in Physical Review A
- Vol. 111 (2)
Progress towards neutron-scattering simulation on an analog quantum processor
- 25 February 2025
- Published by American Physical Society (APS) in Physical Review A
- Vol. 111 (2)
Progress towards neutron-scattering simulation on an analog quantum processor
- 20 December 2024
- Published by American Physical Society (APS) in Physical Review B
- Vol. 110 (22)
Pairing tendencies in the doped Kitaev-Heisenberg model
- 20 December 2024
- Published by American Physical Society (APS) in Physical Review B
- Vol. 110 (22)
Pairing tendencies in the doped Kitaev-Heisenberg model
- Top Cited PapersOpen Access
- 5 November 2024
- Published by Wiley in Advanced Quantum Technologies
- Vol. 8 (3)
Witnessing Entanglement and Quantum Correlations in Condensed Matter: A Review
The detection and certification of entanglement and quantum correlations in materials is of fundamental and far‐reaching importance, and has seen significant recent progress. It impacts both the understanding of the basic science of quantum many‐body phenomena as well as the identification of systems suitable for novel technologies. Frameworks suitable to condensed matter that connect measurements to entanglement and coherence have been developed in the context of quantum information theory. These take the form of entanglement witnesses and quantum correlation measures. The underlying theory of these quantities, their relation to condensed matter experimental techniques, and their application to real materials are comprehensively reviewed. In addition, their usage in, e.g., protocols, the relative advantages and disadvantages of witnesses and measures, and future prospects in, e.g., correlated electrons, entanglement dynamics, and entangled spectroscopic probes, are presented. Consideration is given to the interdisciplinary nature of this emerging research and substantial ongoing progress by providing an accessible and practical treatment from fundamentals to application. Particular emphasis is placed on quantities accessible to collective measurements, including by susceptibility and spectroscopic techniques. This includes the magnetic susceptibility witness, one‐tangle, concurrence and two‐tangle, two‐site quantum discord, and quantum coherence measures such as the quantum Fisher information.
- 5 November 2024
- Published by Wiley in Advanced Quantum Technologies
- Vol. 8 (3)
Top Cited PapersOpen AccessWitnessing Entanglement and Quantum Correlations in Condensed Matter: A Review
The detection and certification of entanglement and quantum correlations in materials is of fundamental and far‐reaching importance, and has seen significant recent progress. It impacts both the understanding of the basic science of quantum many‐body phenomena as well as the identification of systems suitable for novel technologies. Frameworks suitable to condensed matter that connect measurements to entanglement and coherence have been developed in the context of quantum information theory. These take the form of entanglement witnesses and quantum correlation measures. The underlying theory of these quantities, their relation to condensed matter experimental techniques, and their application to real materials are comprehensively reviewed. In addition, their usage in, e.g., protocols, the relative advantages and disadvantages of witnesses and measures, and future prospects in, e.g., correlated electrons, entanglement dynamics, and entangled spectroscopic probes, are presented. Consideration is given to the interdisciplinary nature of this emerging research and substantial ongoing progress by providing an accessible and practical treatment from fundamentals to application. Particular emphasis is placed on quantities accessible to collective measurements, including by susceptibility and spectroscopic techniques. This includes the magnetic susceptibility witness, one‐tangle, concurrence and two‐tangle, two‐site quantum discord, and quantum coherence measures such as the quantum Fisher information.
- Open Access
Simulating Neutron Scattering on an Analog Quantum Processor
Neutron scattering characterization of materials allows for the study of entanglement and microscopic structure, but is inefficient to simulate classically for comparison to theoretical models and predictions. However, quantum processors, notably analog quantum simulators, have the potential to offer an unprecedented, efficient method of Hamiltonian simulation by evolving a state in real time to compute phase transitions, dynamical properties, and entanglement witnesses. Here, we present a method for simulating neutron scattering on QuEra's Aquila processor by measuring the dynamic structure factor (DSF) for the prototypical example of the critical transverse field Ising chain, and propose a method for error mitigation. We provide numerical simulations and experimental results for the performance of the procedure on the hardware, up to a chain of length $L=25$. Additionally, the DSF result is used to compute the quantum Fisher information (QFI) density, where we confirm bipartite entanglement in the system experimentally.Open AccessSimulating Neutron Scattering on an Analog Quantum Processor
Neutron scattering characterization of materials allows for the study of entanglement and microscopic structure, but is inefficient to simulate classically for comparison to theoretical models and predictions. However, quantum processors, notably analog quantum simulators, have the potential to offer an unprecedented, efficient method of Hamiltonian simulation by evolving a state in real time to compute phase transitions, dynamical properties, and entanglement witnesses. Here, we present a method for simulating neutron scattering on QuEra's Aquila processor by measuring the dynamic structure factor (DSF) for the prototypical example of the critical transverse field Ising chain, and propose a method for error mitigation. We provide numerical simulations and experimental results for the performance of the procedure on the hardware, up to a chain of length $L=25$. Additionally, the DSF result is used to compute the quantum Fisher information (QFI) density, where we confirm bipartite entanglement in the system experimentally.