Pancharatnam Lecture

A Strange New Universe: Where Bizarre Quantum Particles Rule

Speaker: Professor Jainendra K. Jain (Evan Pugh University Professor Holder of Eberly Family Chair in Physics Erwin W. Mueller Professor of Physics Pennsylvania State University)

Date and time
Venue
RRI Aditorium

Abstract

Abstract: When electrons are confined to two dimensions and subjected to a strong magnetic field, they transport us into a strange and beautiful quantum world. In this realm, electrons bind with magnetic flux quanta to form exotic particles known as composite fermions.  In this talk, I will retrace the unfolding of the events that led to the discovery of composite fermions, and how they naturally predict the rich phenomenology that would otherwise be impossible to understand.  These particles not only show many phases such as metals, crystals and superconductors, but give rise to other bizarre particles such as anyons and Majorana zero modes, which may one day enable new quantum technologies. No advanced background is needed, just curiosity and a willingness to be amazed by the wonders of quantum physics.


 

poster

Short Biography
Jain is a theoretical physicist in the field of quantum condensed matter physics, with interests in the area of strongly interacting electronic systems in low dimensions. He is best known for predicting a new class of particles that he named composite fermions, and for explaining the phenomenon of the fractional quantum Hall effect as the integral quantum Hall effect of composite fermions. Jain is a recipient of the Distinguished Alumnus Award of the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, the Oliver E. Buckley Prize of the American Physical Society, and the Wolf Prize in Physics. He is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a Foreign Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy. He has held Visiting Professorships at IISc, Bangalore, TIFR, Mumbai and IISER, Pune. He currently holds the titles of Evan Pugh University Professor, Erwin Mueller Professor of Physics, and Holder of the Eberly Family Chair of Physics at the Pennsylvania State University.