Ultracold Atom News

A funded PhD position in the field of matter-wave interferometry is available at the University Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris. The PhD candidate will work in the group of Atom Interferometry and Inertial Sensors of the laboratory SYRTE, located at the Observatoire de Paris. The focus of the PhD project will be on the development of compact atom interferometers using guided matter-waves on atom chips. The experiment will be designed to operate the interferometer at the Quantum Projection Noise (QPN) limit. In this way, we will explore the conditions for the implementation of atomic quantum state engineering protocols (entanglement generation, spin squeezing, quantum nondemolition measurements) for inertial sensing with atom chips, the final goal of this project. We expect this strategy will lead to the realization of sub-projection noise limited cold guided atom interferometers and to novel applications in Quantum Metrology. The first atom interferometer geometry that will be studied is devoted to rotation sensing. In this configuration, a cloud of ultra-cold Rb87 atoms will be coherently split and constrained to propagate along a circular magnetic guide of a few millimeters radius. At the output of the guide an interference signal sensitive to rotation via the Sagnac effect will be measured. In this experiment we will address several challenging tasks such as, coherent matter-wave propagation along a magnetic guide, controlled on-chip coherent beam splitting, and large momentum transfer techniques, to mention a fews. The selected candidate will actively participate on the atom chip design and fabrication, supported by microelectronics engineers working in the on-site clean room facilities in the Observatoire de Paris. The position is based on a full-time employment with an annual gross salary of 33keuro. The total duration of the contract is 36 month and the place of residence will be Paris. The interested candidate should address a CV and a motivation letter to Dr. Carlos L. Garrido Alzar (carlos.garridoATobspm.fr). Eligibility: The candidates must hold an internationally recognized Master degree in Physics at the beginning of the contract. Profile of candidates: We are looking for outstanding candidates, preferably with experience in any of the following fields : cold atoms ; atom chips ; quantum optics ; quantum information. Fluent in English, knowledge of French would be an asset. Used to autonomous work as well as part of a team, with analytical and interdisciplinary thinking.