{"id":487082,"date":"2021-07-30T11:34:30","date_gmt":"2021-07-30T15:34:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=487082"},"modified":"2022-11-28T13:56:18","modified_gmt":"2022-11-28T18:56:18","slug":"rochester-researchers-join-national-initiative-to-advance-quantum-science-487082","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/rochester-researchers-join-national-initiative-to-advance-quantum-science-487082\/","title":{"rendered":"Rochester researchers join national initiative to advance quantum science"},"content":{"rendered":"

Department of Energy grant recognizes the University\u2019s long history of quantum research.<\/h2>\n

Todd Krauss<\/a>, chair of the Department of Chemistry<\/a> at the Ä¢¹½´«Ã½<\/a>, and his fellow researchers are joining a $73 million initiative, funded by the US Department of Energy, to advance quantum science and technology. Krauss\u2019s project, \u201cUnderstanding coherence in light\u2010matter interfaces for quantum science,\u201d is one of 29 projects intended to help scientists better understand and to harness the \u201cquantum world\u201d in order to eventually benefit people and society.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s exciting to see the University recognized for its work in the emerging field of quantum information science,\u201d says Krauss.<\/p>\n

The University has a long history in quantum science, dating back to physicist Leonard Mandel<\/a>\u2014considered a pioneer in quantum optics\u2014in the 1960s. And Krauss says he and his colleagues are now building on the work of Mandel and other giants at Rochester, as well as leveraging the talents of the University\u2019s current crop of quantum researchers.<\/p>\n

Quantum science \u2018the next technological revolution\u2019<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cQuantum science represents the next technological revolution and frontier in the Information Age, and America stands at the forefront,\u201d said Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm as part of the DOE\u2019s announcement<\/a> of the funding. \u201cAt DOE, we\u2019re investing in the fundamental research, led by universities and our National Labs, that will enhance our resiliency in the face of growing cyber threats and climate disasters, paving the path to a cleaner, more secure future.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the principle challenges in this line of research, explains Krauss, is that quantum states of matter are typically stable only at temperatures below 10 degrees Kelvin; that\u2019s roughly \u2013441 degrees Fahrenheit. By comparison, the coldest recorded temperature on Earth was \u2013128.6 at Russia\u2019s Vostok station in Antarctica in 1983. If stability can be achieved at room temperature, then the benefits of quantum applications can be realized on a broader scale.<\/p>\n

Faster computers, better sensors, more secure systems<\/strong><\/h3>\n

More robust quantum states could yield exponentially faster computers, extremely responsive chemical or biological sensors, as well as more secure communication systems, an area that Krauss\u2019s project is focused on. \u201cIn quantum state communications, it will be possible to know when someone else is monitoring your messaging,\u201d says Krauss.<\/p>\n

Krauss is being awarded $1.95 million over three years for his project on light-matter interfaces. Basically, says Krauss, \u201cwe\u2019re sticking colloidal nanoparticles into optical cavities in order to interact the nanoparticles with the quantum-light of the cavity.\u201d The work will be divided among four researchers:<\/p>\n