The Purdue University's Quantum Foundations and Quantum Photonics Laboratory (Prof. Tongcang Li’s group) has open positions for self-motivated excellent postdocs, PhD students, visiting students and visiting scholars starting from 08/2014.

Tongcang Li
Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy
Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Purdue University
Email: tcli@purdue.edu  
https://sites.google.com/site/litongcang/

Selected publications:
1.        Peng Zhang, Tongcang Li, Jie Zhu, et al. Nature Communications, 5, 4316 (2014)
2.        S. Kheifets, A. Simha, K. Melin, Tongcang Li, M. G. Raizen. Science, 343, 1493 (2014)
3.        Tongcang Li, Z.-X. Gong, Z.-Q. Yin, et al. Phys. Rev. Lett., 109, 163001 (2012)  (cover story)
4.        Peng Zhang, Yi Hu, Tongcang Li, et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 109, 193901 (2012) (cover story)
5.        Tongcang Li, Simon Kheifets, Mark G. Raizen, Nature Physics, 7, 527 (2011)
6.        Tongcang Li, S. Kheifets, D. Medellin, and M. G. Raizen. Science, 328, 1673 (2010)

Research topics include but are not limited to:
1.        Quantum spin-optomechanics of levitated nanodiamonds
A levitated nanodiamond with a built-in NV center is an analog of an atom trapped in vacuum, but provides a much larger mass for studying macroscopic quantum mechanics. It eliminates the physical contact inherent to clamped cantilevers and has internal electronic states for convenient quantum control. These properties enable unprecedented force sensitivity and the creation of large spatial superposition states. These large spatial superposition states can be used to study objective collapse theories of quantum mechanics, which propose that the Schrodinger equation is only an approximate theory that breaks down when objects above a critical mass are delocalized over a critical distance.

2.        Interfacing cold atoms and plasmonic nanostructures
The coupling between atoms and photons is essential for many applications in quantum information science.  Here we plan to couple atoms to nano-plasmonic structures. Because of their large negative electric permittivity, metallic structures can support plasmonic resonances that confine photons below diffraction limit. This strong confinement of photons can dramatically enhance the interacting between photons and atoms, reduce the size of the device, and thus increase the scalability for studying quantum optics and many-body physics.