NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institute (EAPSI) for FY 2013 in Taiwan

Tai Ming E, Cambridge MA

Investigators

Abstract

This action funds Ming Eric Tai of Harvard University to conduct a research project in the Math and Physical Sciences area during the summer of 2013 at Academia Sinica in Taipei, Taiwan. The project title is "Quantum Simulation of Persistent Current in an Ultracold Atomic Gas." The host scientist is Yu-Ju Lin. Ultracold atomic systems have proven to be a powerful platform for the study of strongly correlated many-body phenomena, such as superconductivity, superfluidity, and quantum magnetism. This project extends the experimental toolbox of these systems by investigating Raman coupling techniques for implementing artificial magnetic fields in neutral atoms and performing benchmark experiments on persistent current and non-classical rotational inertia. The mastery of these techniques provides a direct avenue for studying non-Abelian gauge fields, the quantum Hall effect, and topological insulators in ultracold atoms. The investigation of methods to create artificial magnetic fields is crucial to extending the field of quantum simulation with ultracold atoms. Advances in this field have the potential to simulate and further the understanding of a whole host of exotic materials, such as high-Tc superconductors and spintronic materials-- materials that are not just of scientific curiosity, but instead have already seen use or have proposed applications in computer storage, medical devices, and green energy. Broader impacts of an EAPSI fellowship include providing the Fellow a first-hand research experience outside the U.S.; an introduction to the science, science policy, and scientific infrastructure of the respective location; and an orientation to the society, culture and language. These activities meet the NSF goal to educate for international collaborations early in the career of its scientists, engineers, and educators, thus ensuring a globally aware U.S. scientific workforce. Furthermore, this experience in Taiwan also further equips the Fellow as an ambassador for science and allows him to speak to the truly global and collaborative nature of science. The Fellow plans to share these experiences not only in the weekly graduate student seminar held in his department, but also to the aspiring high school students that he meets at the science competitions for which he volunteers as a science judge.