Fast charge noise sensing using a spectator valley state in a singlet-triplet qubit

Abstract

Semiconductor spin qubits are a promising platform for quantum computing but remain vulnerable to charge noise. Accurate, in situ measurement of charge noise could enable closed-loop control and improve qubit performance. Here, we propose a method for real-time detection of charge noise using a silicon singlet-triplet qubit with one electron initialized in an excited valley state. This valley excitation acts as a spectator degree of freedom, coupled to a high-quality resonator via the exchange interaction, which is sensitive to charge-noise-induced voltage fluctuations. Dispersive readout of the resonator enables a continuous, classical measurement of exchange fluctuations during qubit operation. Signal-to-noise analysis shows that, under realistic device parameters, sub-millisecond measurement times are possible using a quantum-limited amplifier. Even without such an amplifier, similar performance is achievable with appropriately engineered resonator parameters. This approach allows the probe to monitor slow drift in exchange in real time, opening the door to feedback and feedforward strategies for maintaining high-fidelity quantum operations. Importantly, the protocol preserves spin coherence and can be run concurrently with qubit logic gates.