Travis L Nicholson

About

Travis is an experimental physicist who studies quantum phenomena with ultracold atoms. His work involves cooling atoms to temperatures near absolute zero, trapping them in optical potentials, and using them to study fundamental physics, quantum information science, and quantum metrology. Specific areas of interest include realizing novel quantum many-body states with exotic phases, developing new quantum computing architectures, and designing highly precise and accurate atomic clocks. Travis pioneered ultracold physics with triel elements, which are atoms in Group 13 of the Periodic Table. These elements offer unique quantum interactions and a high degree of control, enabling new directions in quantum science.

Education

• M.S. University of Colorado, Boulder, 2011
• Ph.D. University of Colorado, Boulder, 2015
• Assistant Professor of Physics
• Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Member of the Duke Quantum Center

Selected publications

• Li P, Yu X, Chew SHP, Mo J, Lu T, Nicholson TL. Sub-Doppler Cooling, State Preparation, and Optical Trapping of a Triel Atom. Prx Quantum. 2025 Nov 10;6(4):0403281u20138.
• Yu X, Mo J, Lu T, Tan TY, Nicholson TL. Magneto-optical trapping of a group- iii atom. Physical Review A. 2022 Jun 1;105(6).
• Yu X, Mo J, Lu T, Tan TY, Nicholson TL. Zeeman slowing of a group-III atom. Physical Review Research. 2022 Mar 1;4(1).
• Ju00e4ger SB, Liu H, Cooper J, Nicholson TL, Holland MJ. Superradiant emission of a thermal atomic beam into an optical cavity. Physical Review A. 2021 Sep 1;104(3).
• Liu H, Ju00e4ger SB, Yu X, Touzard S, Shankar A, Holland MJ, et al. Rugged mHz-Linewidth Superradiant Laser Driven by a Hot Atomic Beam. Physical review letters. 2020 Dec;125(25):253602.
• Liang Q-Y, Venkatramani AV, Cantu SH, Nicholson TL, Gullans MJ, Gorshkov AV, et al. Observation of three-photon bound states in a quantum nonlinear medium. Science (New York, NY). 2018 Feb;359(6377):783u20136.
• Thompson JD, Nicholson TL, Liang Q-Y, Cantu SH, Venkatramani AV, Choi S, et al. Symmetry-protected collisions between strongly interacting photons. Nature. 2017 Feb;542(7640):206u20139.
• Bromley SL, Zhu B, Bishof M, Zhang X, Bothwell T, Schachenmayer J, et al. Collective atomic scattering and motional effects in a dense coherent medium. Nature communications. 2016 Mar;7:11039.
• Nicholson TL, Blatt S, Bloom BJ, Williams JR, Thomsen JW, Ye J, et al. Optical Feshbach resonances: Field-dressed theory and comparison with experiments. Physical Review A Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics. 2015 Aug 24;92(2).
• Nicholson TL, Campbell SL, Hutson RB, Marti GE, Bloom BJ, McNally RL, et al. Systematic evaluation of an atomic clock at 2 u00d7 10(-18) total uncertainty. Nature communications. 2015 Apr;6:6896.