Nobel Laureate visits Belvedere

November 14, 2013 in News
sharoche 01

sharoche 01

Belvedere’s developing link with Dublin City University in STEM education received a significant boost with the visit to the college of Nobel Laureate in Physics, Professor Serge Haroche. Professor Haroche has received many prizes and awards, culminating in the 2012 Nobel Prize in physics, jointly with David Wineland. His research has mostly taken place within quantum optics and quantum information science.

When it comes to the smallest components of our universe, our usual understanding of how the world works ceases to apply. We have entered the often paradoxical and difficult-to-comprehend realm of quantum physics. In this world, the same object can exist in different states simultaneously. For a long time, many quantum phenomena could only be examined theoretically. David Wineland and Serge Haroche are responsible for the development of ingenious experiments designed to study quantum phenomena when matter and light interact.

Using electric fields, Wineland has successfully captured electrically charged atoms, or ions, in a kind of trap and studied them with the help of small packets of light, or photons. Haroche has been able to capture photons using another kind of trap – two mirrors which they can bounce between. This device allowed Haroche to study the photons by passing atoms through the trap. Wineland has been able to create incredibly precise clocks based on his discoveries. These discoveries may also make it possible to build computers that are much faster than those we use today.

Haroche gave a most impressive and inspiring talk to Belvedere senior students. This was followed by a stimulating question and answer session as the young scientists quizzed the professor on his background in Physics and on his current research.