Quantum processing through a manifold of dark states

We propose a scalable network, in which all quantum operations can be executed through external controls. Nodes of this network are high-finesse electromagnetic cavities, each coupled to a single three-level atom. The nodes are connected by optical fibers. Each atom is addressed by a control laser, which along with the cavity field drives atomic transitions. The network can be in the form of arrays of N-cavities connected by NB fibers in one to three dimensions. We find that under certain conditions, the system possesses two kinds of degenerate dark states. The first kind are N states corresponding to atomic excitations at each node and these are our logical states for quantum processing. The second kind are NB states on pairs of sites connected by a fibre. By manipulating intensities and phases of control lasers on the cavities, one can pass adiabatically among these dark states due to their degeneracy. This network operates as a .N-level quantum system in which one can generate computationally useful states by protocols of external controls. We obtain numerical results for small chains and square lattices to demonstrate some quantum operations like the transport of states across the array, generation of superposed states and phase-flipping in a network. We also discuss effects of dissipation and limitations of the model.