PHYSICS 180Q
Quantum Optics Laboratory
Description: Lecture, two hours; laboratory, six hours. Requisite or corequisite: course 115C. Limited to junior/senior Astrophysics and Physics majors. Use of techniques of quantum optics to demonstrate concepts of quantum mechanics, including superposition, quantum measurement, hidden variable theories, and Bell's inequality. Examination and use of modern optics, including lasers, optics, fibers, polarization manipulation, and photon counting. Letter grading.
Units: 4.0
Units: 4.0
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2020 - He prefaced this class by telling us it was the hardest physics lab offered for undergraduates. While I don't know how necessarily true this statement is, I personally found this class very, very, time consuming and difficult. What is nice is the collaborative atmosphere with fellow classmates because its so small (6 of us this quarter), so make friends quickly! It's hard because you're learning brand new skills every week which are the utter basics of optical design (AMO, physical chemistry, imaging science) , including polarizers, waveplates, lasers, optical cavities, etc. I personally don't have an immediate gift for experimental science and struggled quite a bit as I kept learning new things. The actual quantum part is the final experiment which is an experimental verification of Bell's Inequality (an optional Hong-Ou-Mandel). That being said, this class is so cool and more importantly, immediately useful. I thought optics from lower div was god awful boring until we started looking at the more advanced EM topics that you don't typically learn from 110 series. Plus, you get a stronger intuition for how QM works! Highly recommend but not for the faint of heart.
Winter 2020 - He prefaced this class by telling us it was the hardest physics lab offered for undergraduates. While I don't know how necessarily true this statement is, I personally found this class very, very, time consuming and difficult. What is nice is the collaborative atmosphere with fellow classmates because its so small (6 of us this quarter), so make friends quickly! It's hard because you're learning brand new skills every week which are the utter basics of optical design (AMO, physical chemistry, imaging science) , including polarizers, waveplates, lasers, optical cavities, etc. I personally don't have an immediate gift for experimental science and struggled quite a bit as I kept learning new things. The actual quantum part is the final experiment which is an experimental verification of Bell's Inequality (an optional Hong-Ou-Mandel). That being said, this class is so cool and more importantly, immediately useful. I thought optics from lower div was god awful boring until we started looking at the more advanced EM topics that you don't typically learn from 110 series. Plus, you get a stronger intuition for how QM works! Highly recommend but not for the faint of heart.
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Most Helpful Review
Spring 2026 - This class is so much work, but I thought it was very worthwhile. Do not take it if you're just looking to satisfy your lab requirement, as you're going to live and breathe optics. If you're genuinely interested in optics, you're going to learn so much and have meaningful projects to put on your resume. The lectures were very long, and I wish Professor Hamilton would give us a 5 to10-minute break halfway through the 2-hour block, but they were helpful background for the labs. Professor Hamilton is very engaged in the actual course and will stop by during your lab just to check in. He is clearly very knowledgeable about the material and wants you to succeed. Your TA definitely makes or breaks this course, and I feel that I got really lucky because Arthur does research in Professor Hamilton's lab. Would definitely take again.
Spring 2026 - This class is so much work, but I thought it was very worthwhile. Do not take it if you're just looking to satisfy your lab requirement, as you're going to live and breathe optics. If you're genuinely interested in optics, you're going to learn so much and have meaningful projects to put on your resume. The lectures were very long, and I wish Professor Hamilton would give us a 5 to10-minute break halfway through the 2-hour block, but they were helpful background for the labs. Professor Hamilton is very engaged in the actual course and will stop by during your lab just to check in. He is clearly very knowledgeable about the material and wants you to succeed. Your TA definitely makes or breaks this course, and I feel that I got really lucky because Arthur does research in Professor Hamilton's lab. Would definitely take again.
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