Boston Chapter of the IEEE Photonics Society

Abstract:  Matter wave interferometers have the potential to reveal some of the most fascinating phenomena of the quantum world. After an introduction on superfluid helium and superfluid Josephson junctions, I will describe how macroscopic quantum-mechanical properties of such systems can be leveraged to construct interference devices to explore both fundamental and applied physics. I will highlight some interferometry results including the utilization of a superfluid interferometer as an absolute rotation sensor.

References:

Y. Sato and R. Packard, Superfluid helium interferometers, Physics Today 10, 31 (2012).

Y. Sato and R. Packard, Superfluid helium quantum interference devices: physics and applications, Reports on Progress in Physics 75, 016401 (2012).

S. Narayana and Y. Sato, Superfluid quantum interference in multiple-turn reciprocal geometry, Physical Review Letters 106, 255301 (2011).

Biography:  Yuki Sato received his PhD in Physics from University of California at Berkeley and is currently a principal investigator of the Applied Matter & Devices Group at the Rowland Institute at Harvard University. One of the main overarching themes of his research is extending beyond conventional scientific disciplines through experimentation. His research interests include quantum engineering with superfluidity and superconductivity, metamaterials and devices, mass transport dynamics in one-dimensional limit, and force/displacement sensing limits. He is a recipient of the Rowland Junior Fellowship at Harvard University.