Dr. Basov proposed for his fellowship grant to discover and study new forms of transient quantum matter. He will use laser pulse of femtosecond duration (a millionth of a billionth of a second) onto a nano-sized spot to drive thin films of selected materials into a non-equilibrium, yet strongly correlated state. The creation of phases of quantum matter on-demand will lead to the exploration of a vast space of physical conditions that can allow revolutionary properties for future quantum sensors, quantum computing, and energy conversion. The possibility to drive the electrons towards states with topological protection and long-lived coherent states is of particular interest for quantum information systems, of critical importance to the DoD. For more information, see
https://news.columbia.edu/news/columbias-dmitri-basov-wins-vannevar-bush-fellowship