German Physical Society honours Kaiserslautern researcher for his work in quantum optics
The German Physical Society (DPG) and OPTICA (formerly OSA) have awarded Prof. Dr. Michael Fleischhauer the Herbert Walther Prize for outstanding contributions to quantum optics and atomic physics as well as for special services to the international scientific community.
Michael Fleischhauer receives the prize for key contributions in the field of nonlinear quantum optics and photonic and atomic quantum technologies, in particular for the development of instruments for the coherent control of atoms with light, including the concept of dark-state polaritons and the Rydberg blockade.
Michael Fleischhauer was appointed Professor of Theoretical Physics at the Technical University of Kaiserslautern in 2000 and has been a member of the State Research Centre OPTIMAS since its foundation in 2008. Among other things, he played a key role in the development of one of the most important methods for storing quantum states of light. This method, known as ‘stopping light’, realises a key element of a photon-based quantum communication system. Since 2020, he has been the spokesperson for the Collaborative Research Centre ‘OSCAR - Open System Control of Atomic and Photonic Matter’.
