An atom coupled to a harmonic oscillator is one of the most illuminating paradigms for quantum measurements and amplification. Recently, the joint development of artificial two-level systems and high finesse microwave resonators in superconducting circuits has brought the realization of this model on a chip. This ‘‘circuit quantum electrodynamics’’ architecture allows us, at least in principle, to combine circuits with an arbitrary complexity. In this context, quantum dots can also be used as artificial atoms. Importantly, these systems often exhibit many-body features if coupled strongly to Fermi seas, as epitomized by the Kondo effect. Combining such quantum dots with microwave cavities would therefore enable the study of a new type of coupled fermionic-photonic systems. I will present our recent experiment where we demonstrate a hybrid architecture consisting of a quantum dot circuit coupled to a single mode of the electromagnetic field. We use single wall carbon nanotube based circuits inserted in superconducting microwave cavities. By probing the nanotube dot using a dispersive readout in the Coulomb blockade and the Kondo regime, we determine an electron-photon coupling strength which should enable circuit QED experiments with more complex quantum dot circuits [2,3]. I will discuss these possibilities at the end of my talk.

[1] M.R. Delbecq et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 107 256804 (2011).

[2]A. Cottet and T. Kontos, Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 160052 (2010).

[3]A. Cottet, T. Kontos and A. Levy Yeyati, arXiv:1111.7112