Singularity-free quantum tracking control of molecular rotor orientation

Abstract

© 2018 American Physical Society. Quantum tracking control aims to identify applied fields to steer the expectation values of particular observables along desired paths in time. The associated temporal fields can be identified by inverting the underlying dynamical equations for the observables. However, fields found in this manner are often plagued by undesirable singularities. In this paper we consider a planar molecular rotor and derive singularity-free tracking expressions for the fields that steer the expectation of the orientation of the rotor along the desired trajectories in time. Simulations are presented that utilize two orthogonal control electric fields to drive the orientation of the rotor along a series of designated tracks.