Laser-induced flatband discovery could shape future quantum computing
Mechanical Engineering Associate Professor Yan Wang is a corresponding author on a paper describing the generation of a coherent phonon flatband — the first instance of this — in the Sept. 26 edition of Nature Communications. The paper, Coherent phonon flatband generated in GaAs/AlAs superlattices via layer-selective optical pumping, shows how researchers used a specialized laser to make a superlattice — a material made of many repeating layers of different substances, with each layer only a few atoms thick — vibrate in a particular, single-frequency pattern — a flatband. It’s different from the vibration patterns that a material naturally has in its normal, unexcited state. This could lead to new technologies that could make our devices faster, smarter or more energy efficient.
