Descripción del proyecto
Understanding the propagation of light and how it interacts with matter is important in many areas of science and technology. While photons are ideal carriers of information due to their lack of mutual interactions, the ability to induce large optical non-linearities in optical media opens up exciting perspectives for fundamental research and quantum information applications. Interfacing light with individual quantum emitters has made it possible to reach remarkably strong non-linearities on the level of individual photons, which can generate correlated quantum states of light. Structured systems of regularly arranged emitters offer a unique platform with enhanced coherent light-matter coupling and highly suppressed photon losses. However, recent work has so far mostly been limited to the study of linear optics.
QuLowD will explore the quantum nonlinear optics of structured emitter arrays in two complementary systems: arrays of ultracold atoms in optical lattices and arrays of long-lived excitons in twisted multi-layer structures of quantum materials. The ambition of QuLowD is to contribute to our theoretical understanding of emergent photon interactions in such novel optical interfaces from the regime of few interacting photons to the many-body physics under strong optical driving. Through close collaborations between two research group led by Thomas Pohl at TU Wien, and associated groups at the Institute for Theoretical Physics (ITP) and the Vienna Center for Quantum Science and Technology (VCQ), QuLowD seek to combine concepts from quantum optics and atomic physics as well as theoretical solid-state physics to advance the understanding of both of these systems. In particular, I will investigate few-body physics of exciton arrays in 2D quantum materials, develop methods to explore the many-body physics of atomic arrays and investigate strongly interacting polaritons in twisted multi-layer structures.
Beyond the scope of the fellowship, QuLowD will contribute to the advancement of future quantum information applications based on light-matter interfaces.