Thomas Carroll

Home Physics and Astronomy Faculty Thomas Carroll

Physics and Astronomy

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Professor of Physics

Simulations of energy diffusion in a group of Rydberg atoms. Our work explores the dynamics of quantum mechanical interactions in strongly interacting systems. Our primary goal is to further the fundamental understanding of the quantum world. We usually work with highly excited atoms, or “Rydberg” atoms, which interact strongly with each other but weakly with the environment. We can easily tune their energy levels by applying electric fields. The exaggerated properties of Rydberg atoms make them an ideal laboratory for studying quantum systems.

We cool the atoms in a magneto-optical trap to about 200 microkelvin and allow them to exchange energy with each other for a few microseconds. At that temperature, the atoms are essentially stationary during the experiment. These stationary and strongly interacting atoms are analogous to a solid and so, in recent years, there has been much interest in using systems like ours as an “analog quantum computer” to simulate condensed matter. We are currently working on these ideas in both experiment and computational modeling.

We have an NSF-funded collaboration with colleagues at nearby Bryn Mawr Interference fringes in the field ionization signal of Rydberg electrons. College. Ursinus students participate in regular group meetings at Bryn Mawr during the summer and routinely collaborate with students there to collect data. Here at Ursinus, we have a small atomic physics lab and a state of the art supercomputer dedicated to modeling our quantum systems. Students work on a variety of projects including experimental and computational components.

Successful students will have the opportunity to present their research at national conferences. In recent years, students have presented in Atlanta, Tucson, Madison, Orlando, Anaheim, Providence, and Sacramento. Take a look at our papers below – undergraduate students who contributed to that paper are noted with an asterisk.

Department

Physics and Astronomy

Degrees

B.S., University of Richmond
Ph.D., Bryn Mawr College

Teaching

Physics 111Q: General Physics I
Physics 112: General Physics II
Physics 121Q: Spacetime and Quantum Physics
Physics 122: Electricity, Magnetism, and Waves
Physics 207W: Modern Physics
Physics 299: Math Physics
Physics 305: General Relativity
Physics 401: Quantum Mechanics
Physics 408W: Advanced Laboratory
Physics 450W: Senior Seminar

Research Interests

Computational atomic physics
Experimental atomic physics
Strongly interacting quantum systems
Thermalization and localization
Rydberg atoms
Atom-field interactions

Recent Work

(Ursinus students denoted with asterisk.)

Publications

Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Nina P. Inman, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, “Time Dependence of Few-Body Forster Interactions among Ultracold Rydberg Atoms,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 133402 (2020).
Vincent C. Gregoric, Jason J. Bennett*, Bianca R. Gualtieri*, Hannah P. Hastings, Ankitha Kannad, Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Maia R. Rabinowitz, Zoe A. Rowley*, Miao Wang, Lauren Yoast*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, “Perturbed field ionization for improved state selectivity,” J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 53, 084003 (2020).
Vincent C. Gregoric, Jason J. Bennett*, Bianca R. Gualtieri*, Ankitha Kannad, Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Zoe A. Rowley*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel. “Improving the state selectivity of field ionization with quantum control,” Phys. Rev. A 98, 063404 (2018).
A. L. Win, W. D. Williams, T. J. Carroll, and C. I. Sukenik, “Catalysis of Stark-tuned Interactions between ultracold Rydberg atoms,” Phys. Rev. A 98, 032703 (2018).
Vincent C. Gregoric, Xinyue Kang*, Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Zoe A. Rowley*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, “Quantum control via a genetic algorithm of the field ionization pathway of a Rydberg electron,” Phys. Rev. A 96, 023403 (2017).
Jacob L. Bigelow*, Jacob T. Paul*, Matan Peleg*, Veronica L. Sanford*, Michael W. Noel and Thomas J. Carroll, “Simulations of the angular dependence of the dipole-dipole interaction among Rydberg atoms,” J. Phys. B 49, 164003 (2016).
Rachel Feynman, Jacob Hollingsworth*, Michael Vennettilli*, Tamas Budner*, Ryan Zmiewski*, D. P. Fahey, T. J. Carroll, and M. W. Noel, “Quantum Interference in the Field Ionization of Rydberg Atoms,” Phys. Rev. A 92, 043412 (2015).
D. P. Fahey, T. J. Carroll, and M. W. Noel, “Imaging the dipole-dipole energy exchange between ultracold rubidium Rydberg atoms,” Phys. Rev. A 91, 062702 (2015).
Rachel J. Smith*, Emily Altiere, T. J. Carroll, M. W. Noel, “Dipole-Dipole Interaction between Rubidium Rydberg Atoms,” Phys. Rev. A 84, 053431 (2011).
Christopher Daniel*, L. Hoover*, T. Sidie*, T. J. Carroll, M. W. Noel, “Simulations of the dipole-dipole interaction between two spatially separated groups of Rydberg atoms,” Phys. Rev. A 80, 052712 (2009).
Thomas J. Carroll, Shubha Sunder, and Michael W. Noel, “Many-body interactions in a sample of ultracold Rydberg atoms with varying dimensions and densities,” Phys. Rev. A, 73:032725, Mar 2006.
Thomas J. Carroll, Katharine Claringbould, Anne Goodsell, M. J. Lim, and Michael W. Noel, “Angular dependence of the dipole-dipole interaction in a nearly one-dimensional sample of Rydberg atoms,” Phys. Rev. Lett., 93:153001, 2004.

Conference Presentations

Alicia Handian*, Nina P. Inman, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Numerical studies of thermalization in few-body Rydberg interactions, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society, Vol. Volume 66, Number 6 (American Physical Society, 2021) p. F01.00119.
Nina P. Inman, Briana Strickland*, Evan Dryfoos*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Many Body Energy Transfer in an Ultracold Rydberg Gas, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society, Vol. Volume 65, Number 4 (American Physical Society, 2020) p. Q01.00112.
Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Maia R. Rabinowitz, Miao Wang, Lauren Yoast*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, “Exploring np + np → ns + (n + 1)s dipole-dipole interactions with genetically optimized field ionization pulses,” in Bulletin of the American Physical Society, Vol. Volume 64, Number 4 (American Physical Society, 2019) p. J05.00005.
Jason J. Bennett*, Bianca R. Gualtieri*, Zoe A. Rowley*, Vincent C. Gregoric, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, “Simulations of directed field ionization,” in 49th Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Atomic, Molecular
and Optical Physics (American Physical Society, 2018) p. T01.00108.
Vincent C. Gregoric, Ankitha Kannad, Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, “Improving the state selectivity of field ionization with quantum control,” in 49th Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Atomic,
Molecular and Optical Physics (American Physical Society, 2018) p. 01.00107.
Vincent C. Gregoric, Xinyue Kang*, Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Zoe A. Rowley*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Directed Field Ionization, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society, Vol. 62 (2017) p. U6.00010.
Xinyue Kang*, Zoe A. Rowley*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Directed Field Ionization: A Genetic Algorithm for Evolving Electric Field Pulses, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society, Vol. 62 (2017) p. K1.00081.
Zhimin Cheryl Liu, Vincent C. Gregoric, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Experimental optimization of directed field ionization, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society, Vol. 62 (2017) p. K1.00080.
Hannah Hastings, Noura B. Jaber, Georgia Piatt, Vincent C. Gregoric, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Diode laser frequency stabilization using a low cost, low finesse Fabry-Perot cavity, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society (American Physical Society, 2016).
Vincent C. Gregoric, Hannah Hastings, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Quantum beats in the field ionization of Rydberg atoms in the presence of magnetic fields, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society (American Physical Society, 2016).
Jacob L. Bigelow*, Jacob Hollingsworth*, Jacob T. Paul*, Matan Peleg*, Veronica L. Sanford*, Thomas J. Carroll, and Michael W. Noel, Simulations of the angular dependence
of the dipole-dipole interaction among Rydberg atoms, in Bulletin of the American Physical Society (American Physical Society, 2016).
June, 2015 - Rachel Feynman, Jacob Hollingsworth*, Michael Vennettilli*, Tamas Budner*, Ryan Zmiewski*, D. P. Fahey, T. J. Carroll, and M. W. Noel, Quantum Interference in Field Ionization of Rydberg Atoms, DAMOP 2015, Columbus, OH
June, 2015 - V. C. Gregoric, T. J. Carroll, and M. W. Noel, Enhanced Selective Field Ionization with Optical Dumping. DAMOP 2015, Columbus, OH.
June, 2014 - Donald P. Fahey, Thomas J. Carroll, Michael W. Noel, Mapping the dipole-dipole interaction among ultracold Rydberg atoms, DAMOP 2014, Madison, WI.
June, 2014 - Vincent C. Gregoric, Thomas J. Carroll, Michael W. Noel, Millimeter wave spectroscopy of ultracold Rydberg atoms, DAMOP 2014, Madison, WI.
June, 2014 - Tamas Budner*, Jacob Hollingsworth*, Michael Vennettilli*, Ryan Zmiewski*, Donald P. Fahey , Thomas J. Carroll, Michael W. Noel, Quantum control using the Landau-Zener effect, DAMOP 2014, Madison, WI.
June, 2013 - Donald P. Fahey, Thomas J. Carroll, Michael W. Noel, Imaging of energy transfer in a frozen Rydberg gas, DAMOP 2013, Quebec City, Canada.
June, 2013 - Thomas J. Carroll, Alexander R. Mellus*, Alexander M. Chartrand, Donald P. Fahey, Michael W. Noel, Computational studies of dipole-dipole interactions among Stark manifold states, DAMOP 2013, Quebec City, Canada.
June, 2012 - Jon Ward*, Alex Mellus*, Thomas J. Carroll, Donald P. Fahey, Michael W. Noel, Redistribution of atomic population among nearly degenerate Rydberg states through dipole-dipole interactions, DAMOP 2012, Anaheim, CA.
June, 2011 - Jon Ward*, Alex Mellus*, Thomas J. Carroll, Michael W. Noel, The Effect of Energy Level Structure on Many-Body Interactions among Rydberg Atoms, DAMOP 2011, Atlanta, GA.
June, 2011 - Donald P. Fahey, Michael W. Noel, Thomas J. Carroll, Oscillations in dipole-dipole transitions from nearly degenerate Rydberg states, DAMOP 2011, Atlanta, GA.