Berengut works on the atomic structure theory underpinning next-generation clocks: highly charged ions, whose optical transitions are both extremely narrow and exceptionally sensitive to variation of fundamental constants and to new physics, and the thorium-229 nuclear clock. He identifies which ionic species and transitions maximise sensitivity to the physics of interest while remaining experimentally accessible, and computes the many-body structure needed to interpret them — work that has directly guided the experimental HCI clock programmes at PTB, MPIK and NIST. Positioned against the established body of NV-ensemble quantum sensing work — DEER, nanoscale NMR and T1 relaxometry protocols operating at pT/sqrt(Hz) field sensitivity — clocks and magnetometers are the two great classes of quantum sensor; his work is on the frequency side of the same estimation problem that fixes pT/sqrt(Hz) performance on the magnetic side. Theory PI with close experimental collaborations.

The LKB atom interferometry group (also at SYRTE, Observatoire de Paris) develops cold atom inertial sensors including the world's best gyroscopes and gravimeters. Key research (Geiger, Landragin et al.): (1) interleaved cold atom gyroscope with 3.75 Hz sampling and 800ms interrogation (record sensitivity); (2) cold atom gradiometer for gravity gradient mapping; (3) atom chip-based compact sources for inertial navigation; (4) quantum optimal control for robust matter-wave sensing. QAFCA project (PEPR Quantique) on quantum sensors for geoscience and navigation. Note: The main PI is Remi Geiger (CNRS) / Arnaud Landragin, both at SYRTE/Observatoire de Paris (PSL), but LKB atom interferometry team is at ENS site.

Boudot has been a permanent CNRS researcher in the Time-Frequency department of FEMTO-ST since 2008, developing compact and miniaturized atomic clocks based on coherent population trapping (CPT) in cesium vapor microcells, including all-optical, cavity-free designs that remove the traditional microwave cavity to shrink clock volume toward chip scale for GNSS, telecom and potential deep-sea seismic-sensing deployment. He received the EFTF Young Scientist Award in 2020 for this work.

Duellmann heads nuclear chemistry at JGU (TRIGA reactor site) with joint appointments at GSI and the Helmholtz Institute Mainz, working on the production, chemical separation and characterization of the heaviest elements. For this search the relevant thread is 229Th: his group supplies and prepares the isomeric thorium samples and molecular thorium ions that Wendt's laser spectroscopy and Schmidt-Kaler's ion traps interrogate en route to a nuclear clock, and he is part of the broader radioactive-molecule programme aimed at symmetry-violation searches. Relative to the established NV-ensemble quantum-sensing playbook (DEER, nanoscale NMR, T1 relaxometry at pT/sqrt(Hz) ensemble sensitivity), the pivot is toward the next frontier of frequency metrology, where the 'sensor' is a nucleus rather than an electron shell -- an unusually good chemistry/physics interface for a postdoc.

Jean-Philippe Karr's trapped-ions group at LKB performs precision spectroscopy of molecular ions (HD+, H2+) to test quantum electrodynamics and determine fundamental constants. Research: (1) laser spectroscopy of HD+ molecular ions in ion traps for proton-electron mass ratio determination; (2) tests of quantum electrodynamics in simple molecular systems; (3) search for physics beyond the standard model via precision measurement. Published in Physics (April 2026) on simplest molecules testing quantum theory.

Kolkowitz's group builds ultra-precise strontium optical lattice clocks for differential clock comparisons and fundamental-physics tests, and separately pioneered scanning single-NV magnetometry for imaging nanoscale current and spin transport in quantum materials. This combination of atomic-clock and solid-state defect-spin sensing places the group's diamond work squarely alongside the broader NV ensemble sensing literature (DEER, nanoscale NMR, T1 relaxometry) that has achieved pT/sqrt(Hz)-class field sensitivities; the lab is actively recruiting postdocs in both directions.

Le Targat co-leads SYRTE's Optical Frequency Metrology team, which built and continuously operates two independent strontium optical lattice clocks alongside a mercury lattice clock, comparing them at the 10^-16 to 10^-17 level and to SYRTE's caesium fountain primary standards. This work underpins the prospective redefinition of the SI second on an optical transition and supports frequency-transfer, geodesy and fundamental-physics tests via fiber links to other French metrology laboratories.

Merkt leads the Molecular Physics and Spectroscopy group at ETH D-CHAB. Research directions: (1) High-resolution XUV/VUV spectroscopy — using synchrotron radiation and table-top laser sources to study molecular Rydberg states, ionization thresholds, and ro-vibrational structure at sub-MHz precision; (2) Precision molecular clock transitions — proposing and measuring molecular transitions suitable for fundamental constant variation searches (μ, α); (3) Metastable atom and ion trapping — developing new trapping methods for precision spectroscopy of exotic species; (4) Pulse and Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy — rotational spectroscopy of transient species. Direct applications to molecular quantum sensing and fundamental physics.

Jörg Müller's Quantum Metrology group works on next-generation optical atomic clocks and superradiant lasers. Key experiments: cold strontium continuous superradiant laser (subnatural linewidth, pushing beyond traditional clock limitations); microresonator-based frequency combs; ultra-stable optical reference cavities; and cavity QED many-atom systems for clocks and sensing. The group is part of the EU iqClock project targeting operational optical lattice clocks.

The Odom Group studies trapped molecular ions at millikelvin temperatures using radio-frequency ion traps. Key directions: (1) Controlled preparation and single-quantum-state readout of trapped molecular ions (e.g., AlH⁺, SiO⁺, N₂⁺) — combining laser cooling, blackbody-radiation-assisted state preparation, and fluorescence detection for single-molecule precision spectroscopy; (2) Search for time-variation of fundamental constants (electron-to-proton mass ratio, fine structure constant α) using molecular vibrational/rotational transitions as highly sensitive probes; (3) Quantum effects in sub-Kelvin chemistry — probing tunneling, orbiting resonances, and quantum state control of reactive collisions between cold molecules. Member of CFP Northwestern.