Past Events

Cancelled

Quantum interferences, where two electronic pathways “compete” in a manner akin to the interference of separate propagating waves, are often exploited in atomic systems to realize a variety of exotic phenomena, such as electromagnetically induced transparency, slow light and lasing without inversion. In crystalline materials, quantum interferences can sometimes be difficult to discern with conventional probes, even if their consequences may be just as profound.

The number of rockets and satellites launched into space has rapidly increased since the late 2010’s as a response to the expanding interest in both the commercial and government opportunties available in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The year 2021 saw the number of rockets launched into space break the record set in 1967 during the height of the space race, while a GAO report on satellite megaconstellations released in 2023 estimated that the number of satellites present in LEO will balloon from present day numbers of roughly 6,000 to over 60,000 individual units by 2040.

Abstract: At the heart of the Weyl semimetal are massless, chiral quasiparticles that derive from electronic band-crossings split by either spatial inversion or time-reversal symmetry breaking. The resulting nodal points in the bulk band structure serve as sources and sinks of “topological charge” that are responsible for the phenomenology usually associated with these materials, including open Fermi arc surface states and the chiral anomaly.

Dr. Colum O'Leary, a Research Associate at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, presents, “X-Ray and Electron Tomography: From Images to Volumes to Knowledge.”

Abstract: The most basic requirement of a scientific theory is that it make predictions. Is the Standard Model a scientific theory? As the well-tested, reigning theory of the elementary particles and fundamental forces, the Standard Model certainly claims to be able to predict the outcomes of a wide range of experiments. Yet from inelastic nuclear scattering, to neutron stars and superconductors, the universe is filled with systems whose behavior should be predicted by the Standard Model, but for which no such predictions are forthcoming!

The Department of Biochemistry invites professors and scientists fr

Edwards Vacuum will be providing a training on Ultra-high Vacuum (UHV) best practices, including best known methods on pump configuration, bake-out, etc.  The goal is to help align UHV best practices department wide to reduce experiment set-up time and re-work. This could also apply to those that do not use UHV today, but may like to take advantage of broadening their UHV knowledge for the future.

Abstract: The scales of asteroid strength, from centimeters to tens of meters or more, can in principle be connected via the well-known Weibull theory (Weibull 1951) that explains in probabilistic terms why small samples of a rock are stronger than the whole. There are fewer weak flaws to be exploited in a smaller sample. This leads to a statistical understanding of size-dependent strength that has been implemented in fragmentation and damage models for planetary materials (Melosh et al., 1992; Benz and Asphaug 1994, 1995). The Weibull analysis enabled Cotto-Figueroa et al.

Continuous-wave (CW) interferometers and oscillators lie at the core of many modern precision measurements including atomic clocks and ground and space based gravitational wave detectors. As with all measurements, quantum mechanics sets the ultimate limit on the precision of these devices. In interferometers employing only classical sources of light, such as thermal sources and lasers, sensitivity is bounded by “standard quantum limit” (SQL) scaling.

Mid-Infrared (MIR) light can interact with molecules by selectively exciting molecular vibrational modes. In combination with photonic structures, MIR can target specific vibrational states of molecular to influence chemical reactions. In this talk, I will explain how photonic environments can modify molecular dynamics through strong light-matter coupling. This strong coupling leads to the molecular vibrational polaritons – a hybrid quasiparticle between light and matter.

Abstract: Understanding the fundamental interactions that influence molecular recognition is essential for advancing applications in drug design, sensing, and materials chemistry. This dissertation uses cryogenic ion vibrational spectroscopy (CIVS) to investigate noncovalent interactions in anion-receptor complexes by studying mass-selected gas-phase ions at cryogenic temperatures, eliminating complexities due to solvation effects.

Mars famously has two ice caps, one at each pole, and two volatiles: carbon dioxide and water. Additionally, at both poles, seasonal ice deposits in the winter darkness and sublimates throughout the spring to expose the residual ice and the polar layered deposits. Investigations of the properties of the ice caps through remote sensing has led to the identification of possible climate signatures, and laboratory investigations of ice properties in Martian conditions can help explain some of the puzzling properties that we observe.

Two-dimensional crystals of trapped ions in a Penning trap have enabled advances in quantum simulation and precision measurement. Because the crystal rotates at ~180 kHz, previous experiments were limited to global interactions, and poor cooling of in-plane motion reduced experimental fidelity. In this defense, I describe using a deformable mirror (DM) to apply patterned spin rotations in the rotating frame of the crystal.

Abstract: The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to John Clarke, Michel Devoret, and John Martinis “for the discovery of macroscopic quantum mechanical tunnelling and energy quantization in an electric circuit.”  This talk will give a brief history of their work and the remarkable developments that followed from it.

Abstract: Fault-tolerant quantum computation requires further advances in lowering physical qubit error rates in scalable architectures. In this talk, I will present our work on superconducting quantum devices to reduce error rates and resource overheads in processors.  I will discuss how defects and interfaces in silicon limit superconducting qubit performance. I will present our discovery of interface piezoelectricity at a superconductor-silicon junction and the impact of this effect on superconducting qubits.

Mechanical systems operating in the quantum regime offer an attractive platform for quantum information processing, precision sensing, and probing fundamental physics. In this talk, I will present new techniques for generating and characterizing non-classical states of mechanical motion using superconducting qubits. Our approach couples the electrical and mechanical degrees of freedom via modulation of the electrostatic force in a miniaturized vacuum-gap capacitor.

The Hubble Space Telescope story has been a fascinating study in public policy, engineering, ethics, and science. The Hubble is perhaps the most productive scientific instrument ever created by humans. In May 2009, a team of astronauts flew to the Hubble Space Telescope on space shuttle Atlantis. On their 13-day mission and over the course of 5 spacewalks they completed an extreme makeover of the orbiting observatory.

Begin your weekend Saturday morning with Chris Marelli, Director of CU Boulder's General Chemistry Laboratories, as he presents entertaining & COLORFUL demonstrations! Chemistry is both a science and an art...bring the family to campus to learn all about the chemistry of colors!
CU Wizards shows are in-person, FREE and geared for grades K-8 and families.