My research interests span a diverse subset of the fields of physics, including quantum optics, quantum measurement, nanophotonics and quantum memories.
I have taught the algebra and calculus-based introductory physics and engineering mechanics courses.
I have supervised many students in the past in projects like building single photon detectors and single photon imaging.
Efficient generatiion of entangled photon pairs requires strict phase-matching. In silicon photonics, this is hard for TM-polarized light because of the shape of the waveguide. In our recent work, we showed we can overcome dispersion and generate quantum states of light in the TM-mode.
Researchers have been able to show that it is possible to directly measure the quantum wavefunction without the need for tompgraphic reconstruction. But recently, researchers have found that it's possible to do so with nonlocal entangled states. Click the image to read more!
Flame diagnostics is important for research into reducing smog and improving combustion efficiency. However, typical diagnostic equipment requires complex timing and costly imaging equipment. We show that compressive sensing provides fast timing and high sensitivity for a compartively low cost.
Performing a solar site survey is one of the first tasks required when considering a residential solar installation. However, the tools used to measure the horizon are not perfect. We study how these errors can affect the energy production of a solar installation. We find that using low-cost tools with relatively large uncertainty (such as a smart phone) is likely sufficient for most applications.
Baseball umpires are trained to listen to the smack of the baseball hitting the glove of the first baseman while watching the runner's foot contact first base. However, because sound and light have vastly different travel times, is this really a good strategy?
Standard spectrometers and spectrophotometers require slow moving parts or high cost, cooled CCD arrays. We demonstrate a low-cost spectrophotometer with no moving parts using a "single pixel camera" and compressive sensing.
Solar power installations present potential electrical hazards during firefighting operations. Even if a building is disconnected from the electrical grid during an emergency, live high voltage electrical lines may still be present between the panels and the inverter due to solar irradiance. We test a new procedure using a common fire fighting foam agent (Fluoro-protein Foam) to de-energize a 2.8 kW solar array under sunny conditions.
Quantum information is a valuable resource, but its often stored in "quantum bits" that are easily disturbed by external noise. One way to revive a quantum state is to apply a weak measurement. We ask the question, how effective is such a protocol in the face of random disturbances?
When making measurements on quantum objects, a natural question to ask is: how well can one distinguish between two nearly identical particles? We visit this topic from the perspective of null result weak measurements and perform an experiment that out-performs standard polarization measurement techniques.
