Research

I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics at Oklahoma State University, leading a research group working on theoretical quantum science. I am an AMO and condensed matter theorist, broadly interested in quantum many-body physics, quantum simulation and entanglement generation.

The main driving motivation of my theoretical work is to provide insightful explanations for experimental results and actionable realistic proposals for applications and exploration of fundamental physics. I much enjoy collaboration with experimental groups, and my work is often guided by recent novel experimental capabilities and attempts to open practical new avenues for advancing quantum simulation, information, and metrology in ultracold atomic and molecular setups.

Current Research

• Squeezing phase transitions. We study how long-range interacting spin systems build up entanglement that makes measurements more precise, and found a dynamical phase transition between a fully collective phase with Heisenberg-limited squeezing and a partially collective phase with universal scaling. More
• Qudit squeezing. Many atoms and molecules used in quantum simulators have more than two internal states. We find ways for arrays of such multi-level spins (qudits), including Rydberg atoms in optical tweezers, polar molecules and magnetic atoms, to generate large amounts of entanglement for quantum sensing, in some cases reaching the ultimate precision allowed by quantum mechanics. More
• Quantum many-body scars. Together with the ultracold spinor gas experiments of Dr. Yingmei Liu at OSU, we study states that avoid thermalization and keep a memory of their initial conditions, and how spinor phases control dynamical phase transitions and non-ergodic relaxation. More
• Emergent topology in spin ladders. In ladders of strongly interacting bosonic atoms and in dipolar spin ladders, topological behavior and edge effects can emerge from the interactions themselves, without fine-tuned engineering. More
• Spatio-temporal and AI-driven control. Funded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the DOE Genesis Mission, we design space- and time-dependent control of long-range interacting spin systems, and AI-driven control sequences for qudit Rydberg platforms, to prepare entangled many-body states.

Earlier work includes dipolar molecules and spin squeezing, Pauli blocking and cooperative effects, SU(N) Fermi gases, many-body chaos, spin liquids, hydrodynamics in spin systems, Floquet engineering and synthetic dimensions. All topics are described in more detail, with papers and talks, on my research pages. The full list of papers is on my publications page and on Google Scholar.