Dynamics of Matter and Light-Matter Systems

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While many everyday life experiences are governed by the laws of classical mechanics, important technological applications such as, e.g., the laser pointer, rely on quantum effects. Describing the time dynamics of quantum systems with multiple degrees of freedom from first principles is a highly challenging task. Correspondingly, many aspects of the quantum dynamics remain elusive despite the fact that most processes in nature are time dependent. This project considers two dynamical quantum systems, a pure matter system and a matter-photon system. Understanding the dynamics of these quantum mechanical systems will not only significantly advance fundamental science questions but also open the door for the next generation of quantum devices that take advantage of quantum coherences and entanglement. The research effort will contribute to educating the next generation of technologically literate workforce, thereby contributing to helping remedy the severe “skill gap” in the State of Oklahoma. The project will significantly advance two topics. (1) The dynamical control of the weakly-bound helium dimer, trimers, and tetramers will be explored. Motivated by exciting experimental progress, it will be investigated how to efficiently couple rotational and vibrational degrees of freedom through intense laser pulses of ~100 to 1000 fs duration. The goal is to induce and control alignment dynamics that is distinctly different from that of any molecule studied today, including that of heavy diatomic molecules such as the iodine molecule. The studies are expected to open an entirely new research direction, where initial universal states are being manipulated with intense lasers that probe the system’s non-universal energy and length scales. (2) Master equation approaches applicable to situations where the photon bath, coupled to emitters, has a non-trivial mode structure or where the dynamics is non-Markovian, will be developed. A key goal is to explore how a structured bath can be used to control collective emitter dynamics. The studies are expected to contribute significantly to the understanding of the dynamics of few-level systems coupled to an environment, focusing on regimes where many-body correlations are expected to be driven by few-body physics. The tools employed will range from analytical calculations to numerical approaches that utilize neural networks.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.