2024-04-08 - 2024-04-12
Florian Schreck
University of Amsterdam
Ultracold atoms are at the heart of the best clocks, are the building blocks for intriguing quantum simulations and form qubits in impressive quantum computers. Atoms combine many advantages to make this possible. The atoms of a certain isotope are always identically made by nature and barely influenced by the environment. This is very different from macroscopic human made objects, such as the pendula of traditional clocks, which are always slightly different and inevitably tick wrongly after a short while. Atoms have a rich structure to give us a vast playground to manipulate their internal state, influence the potential through which they move and tune their interactions. At the same time the structure of certain atomic species is not too complicated and allows us to achieve ever better control over them. Most intriguingly, atoms are quantum objects and allow us to explore and use the laws of quantum mechanics to build devices that couldn’t exist after just the laws of classical physics.
In this lecture series you will learn how to build and use such quantum devices. We’ll discuss how we can control atoms using laser light and other electromagnetic fields. You will see how to get rid of their classical, thermal motion to enter the ultracold regime where quantum behaviour dominates. You will learn how to manipulate their internal state and their interactions. Finally we’ll dive into examples of ultracold atom quantum devices - clocks, atom interferometers, quantum simulators and computers - and learn how they work.
