Department of Physics

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

At the frontier of AMO physics is the possibility to create and control ultracold dipolar gases. The strong, long-range and anisotropic dipole-dipole interaction adds an entirely new feature to ultracold physics, and may be harnessed to explore collective and collisional phenomena that emerge when the dipole-dipole interaction dominates kinetic energy. From the perspective of quantum information processing and spin lattice simulations, this interaction is ideal for constructing the nearest-neighbor interactions crucial for realizing robust and scaleable experimental architectures. Moreover, large permanent dipoles provide strong interactions with external fields, dramatically increasing the ability to explore quantum phenomena using techniques co-opted from atom optics and cavity QED.

Our initial research will focus on developing novel laser cooling and trapping techniques to create ultracold samples of ground state polar molecules and highly magnetic atoms. These ultracold gases will be loaded onto micro- and nanofabricated devices tailored to provide quantum laboratories-on-a-chip.

Research focus: Experimental ultracold atomic and molecular physics, quantum optics, and quantum information science.

Quantum manipulation of dipolar matter

Dr. Benjamin Lev joins the Illinois experimental atomic, molecular, and optical physics group as an assistant professor in January 2008.

Loomis 334 & 332 lab construction:  renovations scheduled for completion spring 2008.  In the meantime, visit us in Loomis 337A!