UMBC Physics Department

Mini-course in Gravitational Waves and the LIGO Experiment

We had 15 people out at the UMBC Observatory last Thursday for our first Open House of 2018.

- 9 UMBC students
- UMBC '89 Alum with husband & son
- 3 surrounding community members

We discussed Cosmic Distances and talked about how some sci-fi writers have attempted superluminal travel.

- Toured facility
- Stargazing 101 with Orion, Winter Triangle, Ta**us, Circumpolar Sky
- Observed Great Orion Nebula with small scope
- Talk as described above

Colloquium: Heidi Dierssen TITLE:Ocean Color Remote Sensing: Understanding Sources of Light Scattering in the Southern Ocean ABSTRACT: The Southern Ocean ranges from highly productive coastal regions of the Antarctic...

Colloquium: Kurt Jacobs
Wednesday, March 29, 2017 · 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM
Physics : 401
TITLE: Exploring open quantum systems beyond master equations

ABSTRACT: Master equations are an excellent tool for understanding the behavior of quantum systems coupled to thermal baths, but they have their limitations. Real systems coupled to thermalizing many-body systems do not necessarily follow the simple dynamics of master equations. Here I will discuss a number of facts and questions about the behavior of open quantum systems beyond master equations, some of them based on recent work and some on work currently in progress. Among other things, I will discuss the relationship between Fermi's golden rule, the oscillator bath, and random matrix models, master equations for time-dependent systems, and the use of MPS methods for exact simulations of systems coupled to an oscillator bath.