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Coupling free electrons to a trapped-ion quantum computer
Elias Pescoller, Santiago Beltrán-Romero, Sebastian Egginger, Nicolas Jungwirth, Martino Zanetti, Dominik Hornof, Michael S. Seifner, Iva Březinová, Philipp Haslinger, Thomas Juffmann, Johannes Kofler, Philipp Schindler, Dennis Rätzel·January 16, 2026
Quantum Physics
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Abstract
Freely propagating electrons may serve as quantum probes that can become coherently correlated with other quantum systems, offering access to advanced metrological resources. We propose a setup that coherently couples free electrons in an electron microscope to a trapped-ion quantum processor, enabling non-destructive, quantum-coherent detection and the accumulation of information across multiple electrons. Our analysis shows that single electrons can induce resolvable qubit excitations, establishing a platform for practical applications such as quantum-enhanced, dose-efficient electron microscopy.