Seminar 19th February 2010 3:30 p.m. Physics Seminar Room (46/5081), Highfield Campus, University of Southampton
Quantum-Opto-Mechanics: quantum-optical control of nano- and micro-mechanical systems
Prof Markus Aspelmeyer
University of Vienna, Austria
- Categories
- MEMS, Photonics
- Submitter
- Hans Fangohr
Markus Aspelmeyer
Nano- and micromechanical resonators are about to become a new paradigm system for quantum science. They combine features that allow unique approaches in both quantum foundations and quantum applications. For example, their flexibility to couple to a variety of physical systems (photons, electrons, atoms etc.) together with their on-chip integrability promises novel transducer schemes for quantum information processing. At the same time, their mass and size allows access to a hitherto untested parameter regime of macroscopic quantum physics such as quantum superposition states involving objects that are visible to the bare eye. Quantum optics provides a well-developed toolbox to enter and control the quantum regime of mechanical systems. Prof Aspelmeyer will briefly highlight the recent developments of the field and report the current status in his Vienna experiments on laser cooling micromechanical resonators towards their quantum ground state and on strong optomechanical coupling to achieve coherent quantum control. He will also discuss recent progress towards generating optomechanical quantum entanglement, which is at the heart of Schrödinger’s cat paradox.