About the Kaufman Group
How does classical physics –- such as statistical mechanics — emerge from the collective behavior of quantum mechanical systems? Can we develop new tools for the manipulation of individual particles, such as complex atoms, ions or molecules, whose interactions and internal degrees of freedom establish new prospects for quantum science?
To answer questions like these, our group applies the tools of atomic, molecular, and optical physics to the microscopic study and control of quantum systems, for applications in quantum simulation, quantum information, and metrology. We marry the tools of quantum gas microscopy, optical tweezer technology, and high precision spectroscopy in order to gain single-particle control at fundamental length scales and very small energy scales.
Towards these goals, we trap single alkaline-earth atoms in optical tweezer arrays, a powerful and effective technology that we demonstrated in 2018 for the first time. Optical tweezers allow precise single-particle control, the engineering of different forms of atomic interactions, and high-fidelity atom-resolved readout. However, while previous work with optical tweezers had focused on alkali atoms, the 2018 work opened the door to tweezer-based control of atoms with two electrons in their valence shell -- although a tiny addition, this additional electron gives rise to the rich internal structure of alkaline-earth atoms, which underlies their applications in metrology, quantum simulation, and quantum information. In this lab, we apply the microscopic control capabilities emerging from the optical tweezer toolset to the quantum science directions that emerge from the use of alkaline-earth atoms.
Research Areas
In the Spotlight
We recently demonstrated a new architecture for programmable control of Hubbard systems of neutral atoms. Here we used this platform to prepare and control systems of up to 180 particles. We study how their dynamics realize the boson sampling problem, originally formulated for photonics. You can read more about here. Congratulations to the team!!
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We have demonstrated a family of multi-qubit gates to create GHZ states on the optical clock transition in strontium. We use these to show atom-laser clock comparisons below the standard quantum limit. We also create cascade GHZ states for large dynamic range phase estimation. Congratulations to the team!!
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After ~six very productive years, Aaron defended and graduated (on Nov. 1, 2023)! Congratulations Dr. Young! We are sad to see you go but very excited for your next adventure in the Greiner group!
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JILA Address
We are located at JILA: A joint institute of NIST and the University of Colorado Boulder.
Map | JILA Phone: 303-492-7789 | Address: 440 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309