Organizers:
Immanuel Bloch
Max Planck Institute, Munich, Germany
imb@mpq.mpg.de

Cheng Chin
University of Chicago, USA
cchin71@gmail.com

Tin-Lun Ho
IAS, Tsinghua University and The Ohio State University, USA
jasontlho@gmail.com

Uwe-Jens Wiese
University of Bern, Switzerland
wiese@itp.unibe.ch

Peter Zoller
University of Innsbruck, Austria
Peter.Zoller@uibk.ac.at

Program Coordinator:
Kimberlee Choe
jy24@uw.edu
(206) 685-3509

Seminar Schedules:
Week 1 (March 23-27)
Week 2 (March 30-April 2)
Week 3 (April 6-10)
Week 4 (April 13-17)
Week 5 (April 20-24)
Week 6 (April 27-May 1)
Week 7 (May 4-8)

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Quantum simulation with cold atoms is among the most ambitious endeavors in atomic physics. The goal is to realize important yet unsolved quantum Hamiltonians using cold atoms in various settings so as to understand the properties of these systems; as well as to realize quantum states of matter that are difficult to realize or are completely inaccessible in solid state materials. In the last seven years, a worldwide effort has been devoted to pursuing these goals and in the process has brought together researchers from diverse disciplines -- ranging from atomic, molecular, and optical physics, to condensed matter, nuclear, gravitational and high energy physics, as well as quantum information science. The success of realizing the Bose Hubbard model in optical lattice experiments, and the realization of the lowest Landau level in a rotating gas a decade ago have led to the appreciation of the extraordinary potential of cold atom systems to create quantum states of matter.

It has been demonstrated that through quantum simulation, one can determine the equation of state of a system, map out the phase diagram, detect quantum critical behavior, and determine localization in disordered systems. At the same time, the breakthrough in manufacturing dipolar molecules, the realization of SU(N) systems, and the success in reaching quantum degeneracy for large spin particles have opened up exciting possibilities of exploring new classes of quantum many-body phenomena. The invention of the quantum gas microscope has opened up yet another set of amazing possibilities, from directly assembling quantum states of matter of interest, to directly probing the wave functions of many-body systems. The recent success in creating synthetic gauge fields has set off an explosion of research activities. The latest progress in printing fluxes on optical lattices, in populating higher bands, and in inverting band structures through the shaking of optical lattices have led to a wide range of methods to create topological states of matter. Very recently, exciting experimental progress has also been made to simulate quantum transport in solids, and to study quantum dynamics far from equilibrium using quantum quenching or an engineered dissipative dynamics that couples the system to its environment. Some collective dynamics in cold atoms also appears to be related to the evolution of early universe. Another exciting development, which is motivated by understanding nuclear and quark matter at non-zero baryon density or out of thermal equilibrium, is the quantum simulation of dynamical Abelian and non-Abelian gauge fields using ultracold atoms in optical lattices. While the present constructions address relatively simple model quantum field theories, the long term goal is to quantum simulate Quantum Chromodynamics.

The purpose of this workshop is to bring together the most active researchers in quantum simulation to discuss the latest developments in this area, to address fundamental issues and major challenges, and to discuss new directions. There will be an international conference March 30-April 2, embedded within the seven-week program, covering all aspects of quantum simulation.

International Conference Speakers

Ehud Altman - Weizmann Institute of Science
Hans Peter Buchler - University of Stuttgart
Eugene Demler - Harvard University
Tilman Esslinger - Institute for Quantum Electronics
Leonardo Fallani - University of Florence
Francesca Ferlaino - University of Innsbruck
Markus Greiner - Harvard University
Zoran Hadzibabic - University of Cambridge
Randy Hulet - Rice University
Misha Lukin - Harvard University
Colin Parker - University of Chicago
Ana Maria Rey - JILA, University of Colorado Boulder
Benni Reznik - Tel Aviv University
Christophe Salomon - Ecole Normale Superieure (ENS)
Thomas Schaefer - North Carolina State University
Jorg Schmiedmayer - Vienna Center for Quantum Science and Technology
Ulrich Schneider - Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich
Klaus Sengstock - Institut fur Laser-Physik
Dam Son - University of Chicago
Ian Spielman - National Institute of Standards and Technology
Matthias Troyer - ETH Zurich
Hui Zhai - IAS, Tsinghua University

There will be a $35 registration fee to attend the 15-1 international conference. The registration fee includes participation in the international conference, lectures, poster sessions, and coffee breaks.