Electron Shuttle Waiting Times for Electric Field Sensing

Abstract

We explore the use of waiting-time statistics in a quantum electron shuttle for electric-field sensing. Electron shuttles convert nanomechanical motion into charge transport, showing a noise-broadened crossover between stochastic tunneling and mechanically assisted charge transfer. This allows investigation of how transport fluctuations encode electromechanical parameters. Using a single-level quantum shuttle in strong-Coulomb-blockade and high-bias regimes with a Markovian quantum master equation, we analyze stationary dynamics in phase space and waiting time distributions. By estimating the electromechanical coupling, proportional to the electric field, we evaluate the classical Fisher information in waiting times and compare it with the quantum Fisher information of the stationary state. We relate the metrological response to mean waiting time, variance, and Fano factor. Our results show that the crossover from tunneling to shuttling is characterized by enhanced fluctuations and increased parameter sensitivity, leading to a pronounced enhancement of the Fisher information.