Welcome to the
Minnich Group
Our research group studies many-body physics primarily using theory and numerics, with a particular focus on non-equilibrium processes such as transport and quantum dynamics.
Group News
Latest publications
Erika publishes paper on thermal transport in super-lattices. Feb. 5, 2019
Happenings
Andrew successfully defends his thesis! Congratulations Dr. Robbins!
Jan. 11, 2019
Adrian and Erika contribute to analysis of an imaginary time evolution algorithm for quantum computers. Jan. 30, 2019
Nate successfully defends his thesis!
Congratulations Dr. Thomas!
Jan. 24, 2019
Nina publishes paper on anharmonic localization in PbSe. May. 13, 2019
Jaeyun publishes paper on vibrational properties of glasses. Jun. 13, 2019
Nate publishes paper on near field radiation in graphene heterostructures. May. 29, 2019
Nachi passes candidacy. Congratulations!
Jun. 4, 2019
Tomi and Benjamin join the group. Welcome to our newest members!
July 4, 2019
Austin receives the Presidential Early Career Award. Congratulations!
July 8, 2019
Research
Transport phenomena
The microscopic transport processes governing charge and heat flow in solids have only recently become accessible to first-principles numerical tools. Our research focuses on advancing these ab-initio methods to describe the mean and fluctuational transport properties of solids beyond the perturbative regime. Read more here.
Ab-initio condensed matter physics
​Condensed phase ab-initio methods have been remarkably accurate in describing diverse properties of solids but have known deficiencies for certain properties and material classes. We aim to adapt methods from the quantum chemistry community to periodic solids and thereby overcome these limitations, providing a route to accurately describe excited states, non-adiabatic couplings, and related properties of correlated materials. Read more here.
Quantum dynamics
Many-body quantum dynamics underlies some of the most physically rich processes in nature but remains extremely challenging to simulate with classical computers. Our research focuses on identifying physically relevant problems that may be suitable for near-term quantum computers and delineating the classical-quantum boundary. Read more here.
Principal Investigator
Austin J. Minnich
Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Physics
Professional Preparation
BS University of California Berkeley, 2006
MS Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2008
PhD Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2011
Appointments
Professor, California Institute of Technology, 2017-Present
Assistant Professor, California Institute of Technology, 2011-2017
Click here for a copy of Austin's CV
Current group members
shi-ning sun
BS, University of ChicagoResearch interests: Quantum simulation, quantum algorithms
Joined group: 2019
tomi esho
BS, University of Texas at ArlingtonResearch interests: Josephson physics in superfluid helium.
Joined group: 2019
ben hatanpää
BS, Georgia TechResearch interests: Excited states in correlated solids, coupled cluster method.
Joined group: 2019
adrian tan
BS, National University of SingaporeResearch interests:
Quantum dynamics, tensor networks.
Joined group: 2018
nachiket naik
BS, Georgia TechResearch interests:
Electronic fluctuations, low-noise amplifiers.
Joined group: 2018
alex choi
BSE, University of ConnecticutResearch interests:
Electronic fluctuations, Langevin dynamics, low-noise amplifiers.
Joined group: 2017
peishi cheng
BS, University of FloridaResearch interests:
Transport in molecular crystals from first principles.
Joined group: 2016
yang gao
BS, University of Science and Technology of ChinaResearch interests:
Excited states in correlated solids, coupled cluster method.
Joined group: 2017
erika ye
BS, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyResearch interests:
Quantum dynamics, tensor networks.
Joined group: 2016
zoila jurado
BS, University of ConnecticutResearch interests:
Cell-free expression, synthetic cells, trans-membrane channels.
Joined group: 2016
jaeyun moon
BS, Georgia TechResearch interests:
Phonon transport, amorphous materials.
Joined group: 2015
taeyong kim
BS, Yonsei UniversityResearch interests:
Phonon transport, transient grating spectroscopy.
Joined group: 2015
Click here to see our group alumni.
Teaching
APh 250/ME 201: A numerical introduction to tensor networks for quantum simulation
Tensor networks have emerged as a powerful tool for the numerical simulation of quantum many-body systems. This course will cover the fundamentals of tensor networks and recent algorithmic developments from a numerical perspective. Emphasis will be placed on both the theoretical foundation and practical numerical implementation of a variety of 1D and 2D tensor network algorithms. For details, click here.
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For previously taught courses, click here.
