LANL/CNLS Workshop on Quantum Trajectories
This workshop provided an interdisciplinary forum for chemists, physicists, and mathematicians to discuss both fundamental and computational aspects of the de Broglie-Bohm description of quantum mechanics. The workshop focused on the computational methods that have been developed for solving the relevant quantum hydrodynamic equations and their applications in molecular and chemical physics. A solution to the quantum hydrodynamic equations is equivalent to solving the time-dependent Schrodinger equation. However, the quantum hydrodynamic approach allows for an entirely different class of numerical algorithms and approximations which could exhibit better computational scaling properties with respect to the dimensionality of the problem. Furthermore, the quantum hydrodynamic approach is intuitively appealing with its well- defined quantum trajectories which give it the flavor of a semi-classical theory. If successful, this approach could open the door to a whole new range of applications never before amenable to exact quantum dynamical treatment, such as: proton transfer in enzyme catalysis and hydrogen adsorption/diffusion in materials. Topical areas of impact include bioenergy, nanotechnology, and materials.
A well attended reception was scheduled Sunday evening (July 27, 2008) followed by three days of formal presentations. There were a total of 38 participants consisting of 24 speakers, nine poster presenters, and five attendees. Eight oral presentations (40 minutes each) were scheduled each day (~ 4 talks in the morning session and ~ 4 talks in the late afternoon session). An extended lunch period was scheduled so that the participants had plenty of time to eat, socialize, tour a local museum, hike, or rest. The poster session was held Monday evening and the workshop banquet was held Tuesday evening at Gabriel’s Restaurant in northern New Mexico. A “working lunch” was provided Wednesday to discuss and plan the future of this workshop series. A tour of Bandelier National Monument was scheduled late Wednesday afternoon at the end of the workshop for those who were interested. Of the 38 participants, 13 were from countries overseas: France, Germany, India, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Israel, and Norway. The remaining participants were from a variety of states within the U.S.: New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, California, South Carolina, and New Jersey. There were a total of nine students and postdocs that participated and two postdocs gave oral presentations. Invitations which included local travel support (i.e., paid hotel expenses) were extended to several professors in the chemistry and physics departments at the University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, and Eastern New Mexico University. Several professors expressed genuine interest but were unable to participate due to sabbatical leave or prior travel commitments. A student from the University of New Mexico and a professor from Eastern New Mexico University attended the workshop.
The generous financial support of the IAS ($5K), the Center for Nonlinear Studies (CNLS) ($5K), Los Alamos National Laboratory's (LANL) T-Division ($5K), the Quantum Institute ($5K), and the National Science Foundation ($5.5K) was critical to the success of the workshop. Local administrative support was provided by Adam Shipman and Ellie Vigil (CNLS). The majority of the funds were used to offset the travel expenses of the workshop participants (many of them simply would not have been able to participate otherwise). In summary, the local hotel expenses were paid for all participants. A significant portion of the airfare and travel expenses was paid for all of the students and postdocs, and part of the airfare was paid for several of the overseas speakers. The remaining funds were used to rent the hotel conference room and to pay for the reception, coffee breaks, poster session dessert, poster board rental, Wednesday’s working lunch, and the banquet.
During the “working lunch” on Wednesday, the future of this workshop series was discussed. It was agreed that we should try to expand the scope somewhat to include experimentalists and more theoreticians in overlapping fields of interest, such as mathematical physics, computational fluid dynamics, quantum dynamics/control, and surface/nano-materials. An organizing committee was formed to help guide the organization of future workshops. We currently plan to alternate the workshop location between Europe and the U.S. every two years. The next workshop is scheduled for July, 2010 in Oxford, U.K. The popularity of this workshop has participants already discussing the possibility of another New Mexico workshop in 2012!
Contact: Brian Kendrick, bkendric@lanl.gov
Forgot your password?
