ARC success for CQOS
November 2016
CQOS researchers won three Australian Research Council Discovery Project grants, a DECRA award, and a LIEF grant in the 2016 round, for projects to commence in 2017.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
Dr Sascha Hoinka
Total $360,000 over three years
Project Summary
This project aims to understand one-dimensional materials by engineering quantum wires of interacting fermions with ultracold atoms. Particles confined to move in one dimension behave differently than in three-dimensional matter, revealing quantum phases and exotic forms of superfluidity not seen in higher dimensions. Ultracold atoms allow the precise control of interactions and a perfectly isolated and defect free environment to study such phenomena not easily achieved in solid-state systems. The goal of this project is to provide quantitative insights into the thermodynamic and superfluid properties of one-dimensional quantum materials with potential significance for new innovations and applications in emerging quantum technologies.
Discovery Project grants:
Professor Lap Dao and Professor Peter Hannaford
Total $299,000 over three years
Project Summary
This project aims to create multi-colour, ultrashort, highly coherent, bright pulses of soft X-rays based on high-harmonic generation in a table-top multiple-section gas cell. Studying multi-electronic and non-adiabatic processes and other fundamental aspects such as multi-electronic correlations and non-Born-Oppenheimer vibronic couplings in complex molecules is a major challenge in current ultrafast photochemistry research. This project will use multiple driving pulses with different carrier frequencies to control the spectral properties and time delay of the pulses. It will use the soft X-ray source to develop an ideal platform for studying multi-electronic and non-adiabatic processes, multi-electronic correlations and non-Born-Oppenheimer vibronic couplings in complex molecules. This is expected to advance materials science, paving the way to soft X-ray technologies.
Associate Professor Hui Hu and Dr Han Pu
Total $308,500 over three years
Project Summary
This project aims to understand many-body localised systems, a state of matter that never thermalises. Many-body localised systems are the only generic exceptions to thermalisation and so are not described by standard quantum statistical mechanics. They could be useful for quantum technology because they retain a quantum memory of their initial state and protect quantum information from decoherence. This project will use highly controllable settings of disordered ultracold fermions in two dimensions. The project is expected to increase knowledge of many-body quantum mechanics and promote Australia's research at the forefront of ultracold atomic physics.
Associate Professor Christopher Vale and Dr Paul Dyke
Total $388,000 over three years
Project Summary
This project aims to study universal phenomena predicted to occur in ultracold Fermi gases confined to move in two dimensions. Universal phenomena are properties or behaviours found in collections of particles that are independent of the microscopic details of the constituents and their interactions. Such universal features can appear in cold atoms, condensed matter systems, nuclear physics and neutron stars, and span vast energy scales. This project's findings are expected to provide quantitative insights into few-body and many-body phenomena ubiquitous in two-dimensional quantum materials. This may have significance for emerging technologies which exploit quantum effects in lower-dimensional materials.
LIEF Project: Professor Michael Fuhrer; Professor Paul Stoddart; Associate Professor Elena Ostrovskaya; Dr Haroldo Hattori; Professor Dragomir Neshev; Associate Professor Jeffrey Davis; Professor Kourosh Kalantar-zadeh; Dr Agustin Schiffrin; Professor Yuri Kivshar; Professor Vipul Bansal; Professor Saulius Juodkazis; Professor Leone Spiccia; Professor Udo Bach; Professor Min Gu
Total $600,000
Project Summary
This project aims to create a readily accessible facility consisting of a suite of tools to study light-matter interactions in materials, molecules and biological systems. Understanding light-matter interactions offers insight into the properties of nano- and biomaterials. The project intends to combine local probes and pump-probe spectroscopy methods for studying nanoscale femtosecond dynamics. It will be accessible to a broad user base, cementing Australia's leadership in ultrafast spectroscopy techniques and nano/bio-materials. The facility will provide a window to the quantum nanoworld, with potential for developing new energy efficient light sources, light-harvesting systems and sensors.
|
