Bloch-Zener quantum walk

Coherent transport of quantum particles in binary superlattices driven by an ac force can realize a kind of quantum walk (QW) that can be referred to as Bloch-Zener QW. In this regime, the particle wavepacket undergoes a sequence of Zener tunnelling events that mimic a discrete QW on a lattice, provided that the impulse of the ac force over one semi-cycle of oscillation is properly adjusted. In the Bloch-Zener QW, the coin states are related to the particle occupation of the two minibands, and thus it does not require any internal degrees of freedom of the particle.