At room temperature, atoms move hundreds of meters per second and constantly collide, yet certain atomic gases can still preserve their quantum nature. In this talk, we’ll explore how optical and magnetic techniques allow “hot” atoms to maintain well-defined quantum states even amid this motion and frequent collisions. We’ll discuss the key ingredients that make this possible, new methods that protect coherence, and how these ideas lead to applications ranging from precision magnetometers to sensors searching for new physics such as dark matter.

Presented by Or Katz, an assistant professor at the School of Applied and Engineering Physics at Cornell University