Studies of turbulence and coherent structures in quasi two-dimensional plasmas and fluids. One of the most celebrated but least understood complex systems in nature is turbulent flow. This cross-disciplinary project aims to contribute to basic scientific knowledge of a class of turbulent flows, known as quasi two-dimensional fluids, that typically exhibit self-organizing properties, stable sheared flow, and relatively weak dissipation. The significance lies in the proposed testing, by modelling ....Studies of turbulence and coherent structures in quasi two-dimensional plasmas and fluids. One of the most celebrated but least understood complex systems in nature is turbulent flow. This cross-disciplinary project aims to contribute to basic scientific knowledge of a class of turbulent flows, known as quasi two-dimensional fluids, that typically exhibit self-organizing properties, stable sheared flow, and relatively weak dissipation. The significance lies in the proposed testing, by modelling and simulation studies, of the well-grounded hypothesis that suppression of turbulence by sheared flow is a universal phenomenon in such fluids, and that it can be exploited to control transport of fluid constituents. Applications of this new knowledge will be developed.Read moreRead less
Slow light in nanostructured materials. This project will introduce and demonstrate novel concepts for dynamically controlling the speed of light and manipulating optical pulses in specially designed nanoscale structures, making an essential step towards the creation of all-optical devices performing fast switching and processing of optical signals. These developments underpin the next generation of high-performance networks, promising to revolutionize global communications. This project will ke ....Slow light in nanostructured materials. This project will introduce and demonstrate novel concepts for dynamically controlling the speed of light and manipulating optical pulses in specially designed nanoscale structures, making an essential step towards the creation of all-optical devices performing fast switching and processing of optical signals. These developments underpin the next generation of high-performance networks, promising to revolutionize global communications. This project will keep Australia at the forefront of international research and provide training of students on breakthrough applications of photonics and nanotechnology, contributing to the uptake of frontier technologies by Australian industries for successful operation in a competitive global environment.Read moreRead less
Nonlinear optics of soft matter. This project will develop new strategies for the use and control of soft-matter systems by exploiting nonlinear interactions with light, and therefore falls into the Designated Research Priority 3: Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries - Breakthrough Science. With soft matter research being increasingly important for applications within industry and medicine, the emergence of new technology for control of nanoparticles could pr ....Nonlinear optics of soft matter. This project will develop new strategies for the use and control of soft-matter systems by exploiting nonlinear interactions with light, and therefore falls into the Designated Research Priority 3: Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries - Breakthrough Science. With soft matter research being increasingly important for applications within industry and medicine, the emergence of new technology for control of nanoparticles could provide significant benefits for the scientific community as well as Australian companies.
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Optical and matter-wave vortices in nonlinear and inhomogeneous media. Wave phenomena of diverse nature have a strikingly similar feature of vorticity, with the energy or matter spiralling around isolated phase singularities. This project targets the fundamental theoretical research in an interdisciplinary field of singular waves transporting vortices in nonlinear and inhomogeneous media. Our project will contribute to the designated priority area "Frontier Technologies for Building and Transfor ....Optical and matter-wave vortices in nonlinear and inhomogeneous media. Wave phenomena of diverse nature have a strikingly similar feature of vorticity, with the energy or matter spiralling around isolated phase singularities. This project targets the fundamental theoretical research in an interdisciplinary field of singular waves transporting vortices in nonlinear and inhomogeneous media. Our project will contribute to the designated priority area "Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries" by providing fundamental understanding of novel physical phenomena and underpinning technological advances in the fields of photonics, atom, and electron optics, where Australia has built strong expertise and plays a significant role in the international development.Read moreRead less
Controlled manipulation of matter-waves in atomic waveguiding structures. This project will enable Australian researchers to actively participate in the cutting edge, internationally competitive research that investigates ways to manipulate and guide large ensembles of ultra-cold atoms and underpins future technological applications in ultra-high-precision metrology and sensors. Australia is currently moving into a prominent position amongst world leaders in this fast-paced research field. The o ....Controlled manipulation of matter-waves in atomic waveguiding structures. This project will enable Australian researchers to actively participate in the cutting edge, internationally competitive research that investigates ways to manipulate and guide large ensembles of ultra-cold atoms and underpins future technological applications in ultra-high-precision metrology and sensors. Australia is currently moving into a prominent position amongst world leaders in this fast-paced research field. The outcomes of this proposal will further raise the prestige of Australian research overseas, and lead to greater acceptance of Australia as a major player in fundamental research. It will also provide outstanding training opportunities for young researchers.Read moreRead less
Matter-wave vortices in engineered nanostructures. This project tackles some of the key problems which must be solved before any applications of manipulating and controlling Bose-Einstein condensates with nanostructures can be realised. This project is therefore of National Benefit for its advances in critical fundamental research and for the potential applications which may be ultimately derived from harnessing the power of this new state of matter. Australia is at the forefront of this revol ....Matter-wave vortices in engineered nanostructures. This project tackles some of the key problems which must be solved before any applications of manipulating and controlling Bose-Einstein condensates with nanostructures can be realised. This project is therefore of National Benefit for its advances in critical fundamental research and for the potential applications which may be ultimately derived from harnessing the power of this new state of matter. Australia is at the forefront of this revolution in quantum technology. This project furthers Australia's competitive position and opens up new opportunities for ground-breaking research and applications in an area which has the potential to be as revolutionary as the development of the laser.Read moreRead less
Dynamics of multi-component matter waves. The recent observation of Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in weakly interacting ultracold gases has opened the door to the field of coherent matter-wave optics. When the BEC is treated within a mean-field approach the equations resemble those for the propagation of light in nonlinear media. The main aim of this project is to bring our broad and deep nonlinear optical expertise to bare on the classical nonlinear dynamics of multi-component BEC like syste ....Dynamics of multi-component matter waves. The recent observation of Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in weakly interacting ultracold gases has opened the door to the field of coherent matter-wave optics. When the BEC is treated within a mean-field approach the equations resemble those for the propagation of light in nonlinear media. The main aim of this project is to bring our broad and deep nonlinear optical expertise to bare on the classical nonlinear dynamics of multi-component BEC like systems. The expected outcome is a position of world leadership in the theoretical understanding of the dynamics of atom lasers, mixed atom-molecule BECs, and fragmented BECs in optical lattices.Read moreRead less
The New Atom Laser: Theory of Quantum Atom Optical Sources. The atom laser is a new device which produces a coherent source of ultracold atoms. A practical atom laser will be a revolutionary source for atom optics. This project will develop a comprehensive and practical quantum theory of a new generation of atom lasers which can produce a continuous beam. This will require a different and more complicated theoretical approach to that which worked for optical lasers, but the result will be a d ....The New Atom Laser: Theory of Quantum Atom Optical Sources. The atom laser is a new device which produces a coherent source of ultracold atoms. A practical atom laser will be a revolutionary source for atom optics. This project will develop a comprehensive and practical quantum theory of a new generation of atom lasers which can produce a continuous beam. This will require a different and more complicated theoretical approach to that which worked for optical lasers, but the result will be a device with a spectral flux which is orders of magnitude better than the current state of the art.Read moreRead less
Detection and Control of Ultracold Atoms. Australia is at the forefront of research into atom lasers, a device that may be as important to science and technology this century as the laser was in the last. This project will provide important theoretical tools for developing the atom laser from an object of intrinsic interest to a useful tool. It will develop Australian scientific expertise in this area, and provide training for the next generation of Australian scientists.
Multiple atomic photoionization in superstrong electromagnetic field. Correlation, or entanglement, of electrons in matter governs many important phenomena in nature, such as chemical reactions, superconductivity and ferromagnetism. However, it is the many-electron processes in atoms which allow the study of electron correlations most clearly. In this project we will investigate such a process of two-electron atomic photoionization by an intense laser pulse. We will combine advanced theoretical ....Multiple atomic photoionization in superstrong electromagnetic field. Correlation, or entanglement, of electrons in matter governs many important phenomena in nature, such as chemical reactions, superconductivity and ferromagnetism. However, it is the many-electron processes in atoms which allow the study of electron correlations most clearly. In this project we will investigate such a process of two-electron atomic photoionization by an intense laser pulse. We will combine advanced theoretical and experimental tools with the aim of understanding how the electron correlation interplays with the superstrong electromagnetic field. This will provide insight into fundamental processes of interaction of intense laser pulses with matter which are important in a wide range of applications.Read moreRead less