
The University of Concepción in Chile has awarded a honorary doctorate to quantum physicist Peter Zoller for his scientific achievements in quantum optics and quantum information. The honor was also in recognition of his long-standing ties with the Latin American university.

A team led by Francesca Ferlaino has set a new milestone in atomic physics by trapping individual erbium atoms in optical tweezers for the first time. Taking advantage of erbium’s complex electronic structure, which opens up new degrees of freedom and possibilities, this advancement opens the door to a range of innovative experiments in quantum science.

Supersolids are a new form of quantum matter that has only recently been demonstrated. The state of matter can be produced artificially in ultracold, dipolar quantum gases. A team led by Innsbruck physicist Francesca Ferlaino has now demonstrated a missing hallmark of superfluidity, namely the existence of quantized vortices as system’s response to rotation. They have observed tiny quantum vortices in the supersolid, which also behave differently than previously assumed.
Read more …Quantum vortices confirm superfluidity in supersolid

On Wednesday evening, the daily newspaper “Die Presse” honored personalities who have made outstanding achievements in their field over the past year at the Austria 24 Gala in Vienna. In the “Research” category, the Innsbruck quantum physicist Francesca Ferlaino was named “Austrian of the Year”.