Stevens Institute of Technology: Malinovskaya Receives ONR Award of $376,029 for Quantum-Enabled Approach to Detect Vibrational Frequencies

Svetlana Malinovskaya, principal investigator and professor in the Department of Physics at Stevens Institute of Technology, recently received an Office of Naval Research award of $376,029 for her project “Broad Frequency Range Chemical and Biochemical Material Remote Detection Using Quantum-Enhanced FAST CARS.”

Malinovskaya’s project will involve broad frequency range chemical and biochemical material detection with quantum-enhanced coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy.

She will use femtosecond laser pulses prepared in accordance with various control protocols to maximize microscopic quantum coherence in the target molecules. This is anticipated to generate an enhanced anti-Stokes signal in the backward direction. High chemical selectivity will be achieved by chirping the control pulses.

The quantum enabled methodology permits the evaluation of unknown species, and it enables the searching and detecting of predetermined chemicals and biochemical compounds in the air. Applications include the identification of a variety of species having a broad range of characteristic vibrational frequencies: oil spills and red tides in marine science, an incomplete combustion of exhaust from aircrafts in aerodynamics, and recognition of lipid droplets representing biomarkers for viral infections in biomedicine.