Tongcang Li selected as University Faculty Scholar
2022-11-08
Tongcang Li has been selected as a 2023 University Faculty Scholar by the Office of the Provost. Li is an Associate Professor of both Purdue University Department of Physics and Astronomy and Electrical and Computer Engineering. He has been with Purdue University since 2014.
The University Faculty Scholars Program recognizes outstanding faculty members who are on an accelerated path for academic distinction. Recipients of this honor have the rank of tenured associate or full professor and have been in that rank for no more than five years. Faculty scholars are nominated by their academic areas, reviewed by a committee in the college, and approved by the provost. Faculty Scholars are appointed for a five-year term and receive an annual $10,000 discretionary allocation to support their research. The program was created in 1998. Li will begin his five-year term on July 1, 2023.
“I am grateful for being named a University Faculty Scholar of Purdue,” says Li. “I want to thank our department, college, and university for being so supportive of my work. It is my great pleasure to work with so many wonderful students, faculty, and staff members at Purdue.”
His research focuses on quantum optomechanics and quantum information science. His work on ultrafast (GHz) rotation of an optically levitated nanoparticle was included in Purdue's Top 10 Research Stories of 2018, and top 10 APS Physics Highlights of the Year of 2018 by the American Physical Society (APS). Recently, his research group developed spin qubits in 2D materials for quantum sensing and also created a Casimir analog of a transistor for fundamental physics and sensing applications.
About the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Purdue University
Purdue Department of Physics and Astronomy has a rich and long history dating back to 1904. Our faculty and students are exploring nature at all length scales, from the subatomic to the macroscopic and everything in between. With an excellent and diverse community of faculty, postdocs, and students who are pushing new scientific frontiers, we offer a dynamic learning environment, an inclusive research community, and an engaging network of scholars.
Physics and Astronomy is one of the seven departments within the Purdue University College of Science. World-class research is performed in astrophysics, atomic and molecular optics, accelerator mass spectrometry, biophysics, condensed matter physics, quantum information science, particle and nuclear physics. Our state-of-the-art facilities are in the Physics Building, but our researchers also engage in interdisciplinary work at Discovery Park District at Purdue, particularly the Birck Nanotechnology Center and the Bindley Bioscience Center. We also participate in global research including at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, Argonne National Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Fermilab, the Stanford Linear Accelerator, the James Webb Space Telescope, and several observatories around the world.
Contributors:
Writer: Cheryl Pierce, Communications Specialist
Photo provided by Tongcang Li