Events



Join us at any of our upcoming events

Find out what's happening within the department. We invite you to explore our upcoming events.

APMS Colloquium

Thursday, October 1, 9:45 - 10:45 am

Prof. Brian R. La Cour

University of Texas at Austin

Dark Magic: The physics behind the Virtual Quantum Optics Laboratory

Abstract: The Virtual Quantum Optics Laboratory (VQOL) is a free, web-based tool for simulating experiments in classical and quantum optics. Designed for both educational and research purposes, VQOL offers an open-ended venue for inquiry-based learning and experimental investigation. Unlike traditional simulators, the nonidealities of real quantum experiments, including dark counts and missed detections, are intrinsic to the physical models underlying VQOL. To achieve this, VQOL does what no quantum simulator should do: It models everything as classical waves with real (not virtual) quantum vacuum components that can be seen directly on the display. Discrete photons are completely absent from the picture. Complementing this model of quantum light is a locally deterministic, amplitude-based model of detectors, which provides a source of nonlinearity. Surprisingly, this physics-based hidden-variable model is capable of reproducing many of the experimentally observed phenomena traditionally thought of as “uniquely quantum.” VQOL is available online at https://www.vqol.org.

Bio: Brian R. La Cour received his B.S. degree in physics and his M.S. degree in physics and mathematics from the University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA, USA, in 1991 and 1995, respectively, and his Ph.D. degree in physics from The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA, in 2000. He is currently a Senior Research Scientist with Applied Research Laboratories, The University of Texas at Austin (ARL:UT), where he directs the ARL:UT Center for Quantum Research. Dr. La Cour is also an Assistant Professor of Practice with the UT College of Natural Sciences and serves as both the principal investigator for the Quantum Computing stream of the UT Freshman Research Initiative as well as the faculty lead for the UT OnRamps Quantum Technologies dual enrollment program. He has over 20 years of experience in research and project management and has published over 60 journal and conference papers. His current research interests include quantum optics, quantum information science, and quantum-inspired classical algorithms.

Health & Learning Center, Building 25, Room 3108
Join Via Zoom
Password: MIRA2026

Sponsored by:

• Center for Materials Interfaces in Research and Applications (¡MIRA!)
• Nanotechnology Collaborative Infrastructure Southwest (NCI-SW) and Arizona State University (ASU)

For more information please contact APMS at APMS@nau.edu