Quantum Engineering of Majorana Fermions

Abstract

Chiral superconductors have the ability to host topologically protected Majorana zero modes which have been proposed as future qubits for topological quantum computing. The recently introduced magnet--superconductor hybrid (MSH) systems consisting of magnetic adatoms deposited on the surface of conventional $s$-wave superconductors represent a promising candidate for the creation, detection, and manipulation of Majorana modes via scanning tunneling microscopy techniques. Here, we present four examples demonstrating the ability to engineer Majorana fermions in nanoscopic MSH systems by using atomic manipulation techniques to change the system's shape or magnetic structure. This allows for the dimensional tuning of Majorana modes between one and two dimensions, the identification of the system's topological invariant -- the Chern number -- in real space, the creation of chiral Majorana modes of arbitrary length and shape along magnetic domain boundaries, and the creation of a topological switch using magnetic skyrmions. These examples of Majorana fermion engineering can be realised with current experimental techniques and will promise new avenues for the first prototypes of Majorana-based quantum devices.