“Secrets of the Quantum Universe” will be an interdisciplinary honors seminar, open to science and non-science students, without any requirement of prior science or math achievement, that will introduce students to the history and the current frontiers of research into quantum matter. The course will introduce quantum mechanics in every-day materials: everything from the atom up. This topic, known as “quantum condensed matter physics” shares the foundational legacy of nuclear and particle physics, yet it’s momentous contributions to technology and fundamental science, and the associated promise and dreams for the future are largely unknown to the educated public.
The seminar will follow the history, pioneers and conceptual ideas of this topic through the 20th century to the current day. There will be a particular effort to connect with the momentous discoveries that occurred nearby New York and New Jersey. In parallel with this story, the course will introduce students to the key concepts, at a Science Times level (no math). These will include electron waves, the semiconductor, magnetism and superconductivity, providing a grounding for understanding today’s frontiers: the quest for topological materials, high temperature superconductivity and quantum computation.
About Professor Coleman