Non-equilibrium Rydberg gases exhibit exotic many-body phases stabilized by
the interplay of coherent interactions and dissipation. Strong Rydberg
interactions drive sustained limit cycle oscillations, whose robustness,
long-range temporal order, and spontaneous time-translation symmetry breaking
establish a dissipative time crystal (DTC). Collective self-entrainment in
driven ensembles leads to global synchronization and a dominant oscillation
frequency. Here, injection locking of a Rydberg DTC is demonstrated using a
radio-frequency (RF) electric field that gradually pulls the intrinsic
oscillation toward the injected frequency. Above a critical threshold, full
synchronization occurs, with the locking bandwidth scaling linearly with RF
amplitude. This includes synchronization of higher-order harmonics, revealing
entrainment of the system nonlinear temporal dynamics. The phenomenon parallels
injection locking in classical nonlinear systems, but emerges here in a
strongly interacting quantum medium. This approach establishes a new method for
stabilizing and controlling quantum temporal order, with applications in
precision sensing, quantum metrology, and timekeeping.

Cet article explore les excursions dans le temps et leurs implications.

Télécharger PDF: