Aurèle Adam develops THz near-field imaging and spectroscopy. Research: (1) apertureless scattering-type near-field optical microscopy (s-SNOM) at THz frequencies for nanometre spatial resolution imaging of material properties; (2) THz time-domain spectroscopy of quantum materials and condensed matter systems; (3) antenna-coupled detectors and sources for THz near-field imaging. Relevant to quantum material characterisation at the nanoscale.
Aeppli leads the Quantum Technologies Group spanning ETH Zurich, EPFL, and PSI. Research directions: (1) Quantum materials imaging — using SLS synchrotron X-rays (including SwissFEL ultrafast pulses) and neutrons at SINQ to image quantum phase transitions, skyrmions, and correlated phases; non-destructive imaging of device structures; (2) Rare-earth quantum magnets and qubits — LiHoF4 as a model quantum system; Er, Pr, and Nd spin qubits in crystals for quantum information and sensing; (3) Semiconductor quantum devices — silicon and germanium nanostructures probed by synchrotron nanoscale X-ray imaging; (4) Van der Waals materials and CDW memory devices. Strong interface with PSI large-scale facilities as unique quantum sensing tools for materials.
Agarwal is a leading quantum-optics theorist whose recent work (with Yakovlev) established quantum-enhanced stimulated Brillouin scattering spectroscopy and imaging, plus fundamental limits of quantum-enhanced sensing, entanglement-assisted spectroscopy and super-resolution. In the broader landscape of NV-centre ensemble quantum sensing (DEER, nano-NMR, T1 relaxometry) operating near pT/sqrt(Hz) sensitivity, this work supplies the estimation-theory backbone for beating classical sensitivity limits.
Atatüre leads the ~30-person QOMS group at the Cavendish. Three main thrusts: (1) Spin-based quantum networks — demonstrating distant entanglement generation and photonic cluster states using semiconductor quantum dots (InGaAs, GaAs) and diamond spin defects (NV, SiV, SnV), including a many-body nuclear-spin quantum register demonstrated in 2025 (Nature Physics); (2) Quantum-enhanced nanoscale sensing — scanning NV diamond magnetometry of emergent magnetism in novel 2D/layered materials and quantum transport in nanocircuits, plus nanodiamond-based in-cell sensing (nanoMRI, thermometry, diffusion in C. elegans); (3) Novel quantum materials — hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) optically-active spin defects at room temperature, and moiré physics in TMD heterostructures. He is co-founder and CSO of Nu Quantum Ltd.
Krishna Balram (inaugural lecture May 2026) develops photonic quantum engineering at the intersection of photonics, mechanics, and quantum information. Research: (1) piezoelectric optomechanical resonators (GaAs, AlN) for microwave-optical quantum transduction; (2) photonic integrated circuits for quantum sensing; (3) on-chip phononic and photonic crystal devices. Focuses on enabling technologies for quantum repeater nodes and sensors.
Barker leads the UCL Optomechanics Group, focusing on levitated nano/micro-oscillators in vacuum. Research directions: (1) Six-degree-of-freedom cooling — demonstrated simultaneous cavity cooling of all 6 DOF of a levitated nanoparticle (Nature Physics 2023, with Monteiro); (2) Sympathetic cooling of two nanoparticles via Coulomb interaction, squeezing transfer (Phys. Rev. Research 2023); (3) Dark matter searches — levitated nanoparticles as directional dark matter sensors sensitive to nuclear recoil and momentum transfer; QTFP-funded project 'Development of Levitated Quantum Optomechanical Sensors for Dark Matter Detection'; (4) Controlling mode orientations for directional force sensing near the quantum limit; (5) Quantum macroscopic superposition tests. Closely collaborates with Monteiro (theory), Bose (quantum entanglement tests), and Ghag (dark matter).
Bartholomew trained with Sellars (ANU) and Faraon (Caltech) and runs the Quantum Integration Laboratory, which works on rare-earth ions (erbium, europium, ytterbium) in crystals and in nanophotonic devices. Rare-earth ions have the longest optical and spin coherence times of any solid-state emitter, which makes them simultaneously the best optical quantum memories and, less obviously, extremely good sensors: the group works on rare-earth-based microwave and RF quantum sensing, on-chip integration of ions with photonic and superconducting circuits, and telecom-band spin-photon interfaces. 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 — rare-earth ensembles are the closest solid-state analogue to NV ensembles, with narrower optical lines and longer coherence but cryogenic operation; protocols like DEER and dynamical-decoupling-enhanced sensing at pT/sqrt(Hz) map across directly. This is one of the best fits at Sydney for a solid-state spin-sensing candidate.
Barz builds integrated photonic quantum information processors - multi-photon entanglement, verified/blind quantum computing, and photonic networks - with direct relevance to photonic quantum metrology and distributed quantum sensing. In the broader landscape of NV-centre ensemble quantum sensing (DEER, nano-NMR, T1 relaxometry) operating near pT/sqrt(Hz) sensitivity, this work contributes photonic-network and multiphoton-metrology tools.
Sahar Basiri-Esfahani is a quantum optics theorist working on squeezed light, continuous-variable quantum systems, quantum noise, and quantum measurement theory. Research interests include quantum noise reduction in optomechanical systems, theoretical frameworks for quantum sensing with squeezed and entangled states, and quantum-enhanced measurement protocols. Borderline theoretical inclusion.
Jean-Baptiste Béguin's research at QUANTOP centers on optical nanofibre-trapped atom interfaces for quantum memories and quantum networks. Research: (1) nanofibre-trapped cold Cs atoms — quantum noise spectroscopy of atom-light spin coupling; (2) single-photon storage and retrieval from nanofibre-guided modes; (3) sub-Poissonian atom loading. Key direction in CBQS center for quantum sensing via coherent atom-photon interfaces.