Tom Lannon (He/Him)

Current Research:

Nitrogen-vacancy centre based quantum sensing: testing theoretical predictions with experiments

No quantum system is perfectly isolated. The surrounding environment continuously “observes” the system, depleting its quantum properties and driving its physical configuration towards one consistent with classical mechanics. Characterising this process, known as decoherence, is one of the most challenging problems facing modern quantum theory. A full understanding of decoherence is essential for the development of quantum technology that is robust against it.

Quantum sensing offers a window into this phenomenon. By attaching a fully controllable probe to the environment I wish to describe, engineering suitable states of the probe and performing the most informative measurements, I can acquire key information on the environment's behaviour and influence. The nitrogen-vacancy centre in diamond is the ideal probe to perform these experiments, with optically accessible quantum states and long coherence times at room temperature.

Biography:

I'm from Omagh, Co. Tyrone and I've always had an interest in science. In primary school when I was asked "What do you want to be when you grow up?", my reply was "Either a palaeontologist or a window cleaner" (I thought it looked really satisfying!). Over the years, my love for dinosaurs (or cleaning windows) graduated into a passion for thinking about the nature of reality. This led me to study theoretical physics at QUB, obtaining a First Class Honours degree in 2024 and I'm now a member of the quantum technology group at Queen's, QTeQ, as a PhD student.

Research Interests:

• Quantum Metrology
• Open Quantum Systems

Supervisors:

Primary: Dr Amit Kumar & Prof. Mauro Paternostro. Secondary: Prof. Marty Gregg