Quantum Optomechanics and Nanomechanics

Pierre-Francois Cohadon's current research activity is split in two distinct areas. He works on optomechanics experiments at LKB on micro- or nanomechanical systems, which aim to demonstrate quantum properties of both light (under the effect of the motion of a movable mirror) and of a mechanical resonator (under the effect of radiation pressure of a laser beam). He also works in the Virgo Collaboration on the expected radiation-pressure effects in the gravitational interferometer Advanced Virgo, as well as on the sensitivity gain achieved using squeezed light. Despite orders of magnitude between the characteristics of the different systems under study, both activities are surprisingly related. Jack Harris studies the quantum aspects of motion in macroscopic objects that combine mechanical, optical, and fluid components. His experiments use ultrasensitive force detectors to measure quantum fluctuations of objects that are visible to the naked eye, to reveal the counterintuitive behavior of apparently simple systems. These experiments are also used to study novel topological features in the dynamics of coupled oscillators. Florian Marquardt applies tools from condensed matter theory and from quantum optics to a range of questions at the interface of nanophysics and quantum optics, addressing both quantum and classical dynamics, paying particular attention to the direct contact with experiments, down to designing the classical electromagnetic and acoustic properties of specific structures. His current interests include cavity optomechanics and nanomechanics, quantum information processing, quantum many body physics, and machine learning for physics. Leticia Cugliandolo is Professor at Pierre and Marie Curie University, where she works on statistical physics and field theory with applications to soft and hard condensed matter. She has written more than 130 scientific papers, and has been a coeditor of the Les Houches book series since 2007, when she assumed the directorship of the Les Houches Summer School of Physics.