Overview
01 Sep - 04 Sep 2025
Where: Tagungszentrum Steinbach/Taunus, Waldstr. 31, 61449 Steinbach
Scientific organizers: Prof. Horst Schmidt-Böcking (Institut für Kernphysik, Universität Frankfurt), Prof. Klaus Blaum (Max-Planck-Institut für Kernphysik, Heidelberg), Cyrus Walther (International Association of Physics students)
For any inquiries please contact the seminar secretariat at:
The exploration of the physics of the microcosm (the quantum world) is rooted in experimental discoveries (e.g., Kirchhoff and Bunsen, Roentgen, Zeeman, Stern-Gerlach, etc.) as well as theoretically derived models and hypotheses (e.g., Planck, Bohr, Sommerfeld and Debye, Landé, Heisenberg, Schrödinger, Dirac, etc.). However, the history of quantum physics is often primarily attributed to theoretical advancements. This workshop aims to demonstrate, using selected topics, how fundamentally important experimental observation has been and how it has led to the development of technologies over subsequent decades that have profoundly transformed human life.
A retrospective look at the history of physics will illustrate how a physical experiment, driven by the curiosity of the experimenter, led to a discovery that marked the beginning of a new quantum technology. These discoverers were typically "lateral thinkers" who sought to prove or disprove hypotheses. In rare cases, serendipitous discoveries were made, the validity of which had to be substantiated and proven thereafter.
The aim of the seminar is to bring together renowned experts, young researchers, and students who share a common interest and passion for quantum sciences and technologies. We plan to outline the entire spectrum of quantum technologies, spanning from atomic and nuclear physics to medical physics, quantum computing, and physics beyond the Standard Model. A series of invited talks will address both the historical developments, such as those in the field of femto- and attosecond laser physics, and the most recent experimental advances that enable a new generation of quantum technology-based AMO measurements with unprecedented accuracy.
To establish a broader context, experts from various fields, such as time measurement, semiconductor technology, and scanning tunneling spectroscopy, will present their findings. The success of high-precision searches for new physics, for example, not only depends on the development and application of novel experimental quantum technologies but also requires theoretical guidance and support. Therefore, leading theorists from around the world are invited to participate in the seminar and discuss the current state of their respective research areas.
The topics to be discussed will start with the historical experiments, describe the development of the associated technologies, and provide examples of their modern applications.
Selected areas of technology include:
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
In Frankfurt, Gerlach and Stern were the first to demonstrate that atoms possess a magnetic moment, which they were able to measure quantitatively. In 1929/30, Stern, together with his colleague Phipps, conducted the first three-stage Stern-Gerlach experiment, as proposed by Heisenberg and Bohr (1927) and Einstein (1928). In this experiment, Stern was able to induce spin flips in the middle stage using a time-dependent magnetic field (Bohr had already suggested photon resonance absorption as early as 1927).
A decade later, Rabi introduced a significantly improved apparatus, known as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1944. Rabi's students (including Purcell, Bloch, Ernst, and others) further refined the NMR technique, bringing it to its current advanced state and applying it widely across various fields of life sciences and medicine.
Atomic Clocks and Time Measurement
Around 70 years ago, Ramsey successfully excited an atomic beam in two spatially separated cavities using the Separated Oscillatory Fields Method. This approach improved frequency resolution through interference, achieving a relative resolution of 10e−9 as early as 1954. With this innovation, Ramsey effectively invented the atomic clock, building upon Stern's molecular beam technique.
Today, frequency (and thus time) can be measured with a precision better than 10e−15 seconds. This remarkable accuracy in frequency measurement forms the foundation of many modern quantum technologies, such as GPS systems, distance measurements, and beyond.
Masers and Lasers
In 1916, Albert Einstein described the fundamental principle of masers and lasers, stimulated emission as the reverse process of absorption. The first experimental evidence was provided by Rudolf Ladenburg in 1928. In 1954, Charles H. Townes successfully constructed the first maser. The first laser, a ruby laser, was completed by Theodore Maiman on May 16, 1960. Semiconductor lasers were developed in the 1960s, and advancements in semiconductor technology during the late 1980s led to increasingly durable and highly efficient semiconductor laser diodes. These low-power diodes became widely used in CD and DVD drives as well as in fiber-optic communication networks. Over time, they began replacing inefficient lamp-pumped solid-state lasers with high-power pump sources, now reaching kilowatt levels.
At the beginning of the 21st century, nonlinear optical effects were first exploited to generate attosecond pulses in the X-ray range, enabling the observation of temporal processes within atoms. Today, lasers have become indispensable tools in industries, medicine, communication, scientific research, and consumer electronics. Lasers are now applied in nearly every aspect of modern life. The various facets of these applications will be explored in detail during the presentations.
Quantum Computing
A quantum computer is a device that leverages quantum mechanical phenomena for computation. Unlike classical physics, which cannot fully explain the functionality of these quantum devices, a scalable quantum computer has the potential to perform certain calculations exponentially faster than any modern "classical" computer. Notably, a large-scale quantum computer could break widely used encryption systems and assist physicists in conducting complex physical simulations. However, the current state of quantum computing remains largely experimental and impractical, with significant challenges hindering its widespread application.
Two of the most promising quantum computing technologies are superconductors (which eliminate electrical resistance to isolate electric current) and ion traps (which confine single atomic particles using electromagnetic fields). In a 1984 paper, Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard applied quantum theory to cryptographic protocols, demonstrating that quantum key distribution could enhance information security.
The potential applications of quantum computers can be broadly categorized into four main areas: cybersecurity, data analysis and artificial intelligence, optimization and simulation, as well as data management and search processes.
Microscopy
The oldest known microscopy technique is light microscopy, which was likely developed in the Netherlands around 1600. The physically maximal possible resolution of a classical light microscope is dependent on the wavelength of the light used, and is limited to about 0.2 micrometers at best. This limit is referred to as the Abbe limit, as the underlying principles were described by Ernst Abbe in the late 19th century. In 1912, Max von Laue was the first to detect atomic structures using very short-wavelength X-rays. However, several methods now exist that can overcome this limit.
Electron microscopes, developed since the 1930s, offer higher resolution, as electron beams have smaller wavelengths than light. Scanning probe microscopes, operating on a different principle, use very fine needles with atomic-scale tips to scan the surfaces of objects. Attosecond Free Electron Laser (FEL) pulses in the X-ray wavelength range now allow for the imaging of atomic structures of individual molecules with atomic resolution. The COLTRIMS reaction microscope can visualize the inner atomic or molecular dynamics structure with subattosecond resolution by measuring the momenta of all charged fragments in a molecule fragmentation process, using multi-coincidence techniques with high resolution.
Quantum Standards
Fundamental research into the key component of microelectronics, the silicon field-effect transistor, led to the discovery of the quantum Hall effect, which earned the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1985. This discovery sparked a revolution in metrology, ultimately leading to the global adoption of an international system of units based on natural constants and quantum standards. As a result, all countries agreed to redefine the unit of mass, the kilogram, based on a fixed value for the Planck constant h, starting on May 20, 2019. Similarly, the unit of electric current, the ampere, was redefined based on a fixed value for the elementary charge e.
Recent advancements in quantum standards continue to progress, particularly in the realm of atomic clocks, with the potential for the first establishment of a nuclear clock. These developments have applications ranging from measurements of potential temporal changes in fundamental constants to the search for a new fifth force and physics beyond the Standard Model.
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