Ashtekar Frontiers of Science lecture series celebrates ‘Year of Quantum’

2025 has been designated the “Year of Quantum” by the United Nations to recognize the contributions that have been made in quantum science since the development of quantum mechanics 100 years ago. To celebrate this scientific milestone, the Penn State Eberly College of Science’s Ashtekar Frontiers of Science lecture series focused on quantum science and the impact that Penn State is making in the field. 

“Quantum touches many areas of our lives,” said Mauricio Terrones, George A. and Margaret M. Downsbrough Head of the Department of Physics. “Penn State and the Eberly College of Science have the leadership for positioning ourselves into the outside world. Penn State has unique strengths, especially when it comes to the nexus of quantum and different fields like material science.”

The lecture series, titled “2025: Year of Quantum,” explored how physics at the smallest scales impacts materials, human health, computing, communications, and more. This past winter, the lecture series celebrated its 31st year.

“We are fortunate in this college and in this University to have visionary faculty leading the next generation of interdisciplinary discoveries in quantum science,” said Aleksandra Slavković, associate dean for research in the Eberly College of Science. 

• Sascha Meinrath, Palmer Chair in Telecommunications in Penn State’s Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications and director of X-Lab, kicked off the Ashtekar lectures with his talk about privacy concerns in technology as the world enters the quantum era. Watch Meinrath’s lecture.
• Lukas Muechler, assistant professor of chemistry and physics, presented his lecture, titled “How Chemistry and Physics Come Together in Quantum Materials,” which showcased the interdisciplinary nature of his research. He discussed the importance of how these two fields connect in quantum science and some recent breakthroughs. Watch Muechler’s lecture.
• Xiantao Li, professor of mathematics, brought in a new perspective as a faculty member in the Department of Mathematics. He shared how quantum computing can extend beyond the quantum realm and into scientific computing, which paves the way for scientific discovery across multiple disciplines. Watch Li’s lecture.
• Abhinav Kandala, an Eberly College of Science alumnus and principal research scientist at IBM Quantum, discussed the idea of accurate quantum computing and the engineering challenge that it imposes, due to the error rates of quantum bits — the fundamental building blocks of quantum computers. Watch Kandala’s lecture.
• Jun Zhu, professor of physics, focused her lecture on edge states — one-dimensional quantum wires — and their various properties. With the move to the quantum era, the development of new materials is paramount, and Zhu has been exploring the role of edge states in a system that could be the backbone of the quantum interconnect network. Watch Zhu’s lecture.
• The final Ashtekar Frontiers of Science lecture was presented by Marcos Rigol, professor of physics. In his talk, “A Tale of Two Gases: Classical and Quantum,” and through live demonstrations, Rigol used quantum theory to explain the different behaviors of quantum gases. Watch Rigol’s lecture. 

“Thank you to Abhay Ashtekar, Atherton Professor Emeritus, for recognizing early on the importance of science outreach and connecting our community to the exciting research that is being done at the University and the Eberly College of Science. His support continues to sustain this preeminent long-standing lecture series, so it will continue for many years to come,” said Heather Robbins, director of communications for the Eberly College of Science. “And thank you to our wonderful research and communications office staff for organizing the series and to our faculty members for sharing the groundbreaking interdisciplinary work they are doing in quantum science and the real-world implications of their research.”

About the Ashtekar Frontiers of Science Lectures

The Penn State Lectures on the Frontiers of Science was founded by Abhay Ashtekar in 1995, soon after he arrived at Penn State as director of a new research center that subsequently evolved to become the Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos. It owes its success to tireless efforts and meticulous planning by Barbara Kennedy, who presided over the series during its first 25 years, making it one of the most successful science outreach events in central Pennsylvania.