Observational cosmologist studying distant galaxies and supermassive black holes across X-ray, optical, near-IR, submillimeter, and radio wavelengths, tracing star formation and accretion histories of the universe.
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).
Barnes co-developed (with Nottingham's Matt Brookes) OPM-MEG, the first wearable whole-head magnetoencephalography scanner: a helmet of optically-pumped magnetometer quantum sensors (spin-exchange-relaxation-free Rb vapour cells) that lets patients move naturally during a brain scan, inside an actively-nulled magnetically shielded room. His group has validated the system against cryogenic SQUID-MEG, deployed the UK's first paediatric OPM-MEG epilepsy clinic, and extended the technology to spinal-cord recording and naturalistic/VR paradigms -- a direct human-trials application of a quantum sensor whose femtotesla-scale sensitivity is comparable to the pT/sqrt(Hz)-class sensitivity sought from NV-ensemble magnetometry, but achieved with room-temperature atomic vapour cells rather than solid-state spin defects.
Barry works on the detection of the 21-cm signal from the Epoch of Reionisation with the Murchison Widefield Array and, prospectively, SKA-Low. Her specialty is calibration systematics: she has shown how small errors in the sky and beam model propagate into spectral structure that mimics or swamps the cosmological signal, and has developed the diagnostic and mitigation framework that current MWA upper limits rest on. This is a measurement whose entire difficulty is instrumental. 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 — the intellectual structure is identical to a hard magnetometry measurement: raw sensitivity is adequate, and everything depends on understanding correlated, instrument-induced systematics well enough to subtract them below the signal. Early-career PI (DECRA). Borderline astronomy inclusion, kept on the systematics/instrument criterion.
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.
Develops BioMEMS and nanopore-based biosensors, lab-on-chip devices, and micro/nano-fabricated platforms for pathogen and biomolecule detection and multiscale tissue engineering.
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.
Bath's group designs and assembles DNA- and RNA-based molecular machines and nanostructures (including DNA origami 'molecular signposts' for cryo-electron tomography), aiming to create probes of cellular structure and function and new disruptive technologies for molecular manufacturing.
PREFERRED. Bathe's lab programs DNA and RNA into custom 2D/3D nanoscale materials (DNA origami via the DAEDALUS algorithm) for applications spanning vaccines/therapeutics, massive molecular data storage, and — most relevant here — using DNA as a programmable scaffold to organize photonic and quantum-optical elements (mimicking quantum coherence effects seen in photosynthetic light-harvesting) and single-molecule optical biosensing.