Abstract: Simulating models of the physical world is instrumental in advancing scientific knowledge and developing technologies. The task has accordingly been at the heart of science for centuries. Still, many important problems remain beyond current capabilities. In this talk I will discuss the exciting possibility that next generation simulation devices capable of answering some hitherto unsolved questions may make use of subtle quantum features like entanglement, i.e. be quantum simulators.  I will start by discussing the general process of simulation and how it is used in the physical sciences to further our understanding of nature. I will then describe how ensembles of atoms which are cooled to temperatures near absolute zero and are trapped by magnetic and light forces are a promising candidate for building first generation quantum simulators. Recent experimental results which have already demonstrated the computational power of cold atom simulators will also be presented. I will conclude my talk by discussing the possible implications of quantum simulation for the development of quantum materials and the close connection between quantum simulation and quantum computation which are both important applications of nascent quantum technologies.

About the Speaker: Prof. Dieter Jaksch obtained his PhD from the University of Innsbruck in Austria in 1999. He moved to the University of Oxford in 2003 to take up a lecturer position at the Clarendon Laboratory in the Department of Physics. Since 2010 he is a Professor of Physics at the University of Oxford. His research concentrates on non-equilibrium quantum dynamics in many-body systems with a focus on ultracold atoms in optical lattices and their applications in quantum information processing. Dieter Jaksch is a Fellow of Keble College and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

                  
Date&Time: May 13, 2014 (Tuesday), 15:00 - 16:00
Location: 606 Conference Room