Profile

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Araceli Venegas-Gomez

My CV

  • Current Job:

    I have always been interested in science since I was a child, and kept myself up to date with the latest scientific news. Some years ago I started to participate more actively in science discussions and conferences as a hobby.

    I’m actually an aerospace engineer and science lover. After several years working in industry, I decided to follow my passion for science, and became a Physics PhD student! I like to think that I might discover new things about the universe at the quantum level. I love explaining complicated concepts and raising science awareness to the general public.

    I fell in love with Quantum Mechanics. I wanted to learn more about it and found it so exciting that when I took the decision to quit my job in industry and go into research, I knew it had to be in that field.
    There are just so many unanswered questions and unsolved mysteries about the universe we live in, both at a macro level and, in my case, at the tiniest level.

    I know, I’m a total science freak!

    • The most exciting thing that's happened this year in my research area:

      We are now entering a second quantum revolution, where Quantum Technologies is emerging as a cross-disciplinary field of applied research, based on the properties of quantum mechanics, such as quantum entanglement and quantum superposition. It is a very interesting time for me to be part of it!

    • My latest work:

      Many phenomena in the quantum world cannot be investigated directly in the laboratory, and even supercomputers fail at simulating them. Quantum simulators are specific purpose devices designed to provide insight on unique physics problems. I work with quantum simulators, using mathematical models to mimic the interactions of atoms in optical (light-made) lattices. With these investigations we can design specific magnetic properties or control matter to eventually create a quantum computer.

      Behind all great technological advances in History there was a huge amount of theoretical work required to understand how things really work. To use a couple of examples, the GPS is based on the Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, and the laser invention relied on understanding the discrete nature of atomic energy levels (the quanta), which is the basis of Quantum Mechanics. Today, lasers are surrounding us and are key part of many commons tools we use daily! Quantum Physics studies the universe at the smallest level, and its applications are part of our daily life, in computers, magnetic resonance, lasers … Specifically in my work, we study quantum magnetism, directly linked to high temperature superconductors, leading to possible new materials in the future.