»News and Announcements
Congratulations to David Gross
Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics
David J. Gross has been a leading figure in fundamental physics for six decades. In the early 1970s, there was a gap in quantum field theory, our best theory of particles and forces. The theory could not describe or accurately predict the strong nuclear force, which holds the nucleus of the atom together. But in 1973, Gross and his graduate student Frank Wilczek (as well as, independently, David Politzer) solved the mystery. They discovered that the strong force works the opposite way to familiar forces like gravity: it gets weaker as particles approach each other, but stronger as they move apart. This explained why quarks, the particles inside the atomic nucleus, can never escape or be observed in isolation, and it enabled the development of quantum chromodynamics – the theory of the strong force and the final foundation stone of the Standard Model of particle physics.
Gross has gone on to make seminal contributions across multiple areas of theoretical physics. For example, he and his collaborators developed a simplified quantum field theory that helped explain how particles can acquire mass; and developed new theoretical approaches attempting to unify all fundamental forces, including gravity, in a single framework known as heterotic string theory.
Alongside his theoretical work, Gross has a longstanding record of leadership in the physics community, in roles including Director of the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, and President of the American Physical Society. He has helped establish physics institutes in India, China, and South America. He directed the Jerusalem Winter School in Theoretical Physics and chaired the Solvay Physics Conferences for the last 25 years. In 2025 he was one of the authors of an ambitious 40-year plan for physics on behalf of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. And over the course of his career, he has been a mentor to numerous brilliant students who became leaders themselves, passing on his vision of physics as a collaborative international endeavor.
Chapman IQS Joins NASA JPL’s Quantum Hub
Chapman University’s Institute for Quantum Studies (IQS) is excited to announce its membership in the NASA/JPL Quantum Hub, a new collaborative network uniting leading universities, NASA centers, and industry
partners to advance quantum technologies for space.
As part of the Hub, Chapman will participate in joint research, educational initiatives,
seminars, and workforce-development programs focused on quantum sensing, communication,
and next-generation space applications.
This partnership places Chapman IQS at the forefront of cutting-edge quantum innovation
and opens new opportunities for our students, researchers, and collaborators.
100 Years of Quantum: Perspectives on its Past, Present, and Future
As part of the 100 Years of Quantum celebration hosted by the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, our faculty member Dr. Matt Leifer delivered a thought-provoking talk exploring the evolution of quantum theory over the past century. His presentation highlighted the deep conceptual challenges that have shaped quantum mechanics since its inception, as well as emerging ideas that could define its next hundred years.
We’re proud to see Dr. Leifer representing our institution at such a landmark event in the global physics community.
We’re Honored to be AIAOC Design Awards Winners!
Chapman University’s Killefer Institute for Quantum Studies has been honored by the AIA Orange County Design Awards in the Commercial > Built category! This LEED Gold–certified project celebrates the adaptive reuse of the historic 1931 Killefer School, transforming it into a state‑of‑the‑art research institute
- Congratulations to Dr. Andrew Jordan for receiving the Medal of Honor from the Frontiers of Quantum and Mesoscopic Themodynamics conference in Prague, Czech Republic 2024!
- Andrew Jordan's work was featured in "A Quantum Leap in Power Generation" by Zeeya Merali by the John Templeton Foundation
- Quantum Measurement, Theory & Practice by Andrew N. Jordan and Irfan A. Siddiqi
- $3 Million Surprise Gift Endows Chairs in Math, Philosophy and Physics | Chapman Newsroom
- Schmid College of Science and Technology and the MPP program will organize a conference on the utility of philosophy for the sciences. Info on this conference can be found here.
Chapman Newsroom Article - Super Radar featuring Andrew N. Jordan and John C. Howell. University’s Institute for Quantum Studies has achieved a major breakthrough in radar research: for the first time, they’ve overcome the century‑old trade‑off between wavelength and distance resolution. Working with collaborators at Hebrew University, University of Rochester, the Perimeter Institute, and University of Waterloo, they used specially designed interference waveforms to sharpen distance measurements by 100× beyond what was thought possible
- Killefer building renovations to open new opportunities for research, engagement for Chapman University
- Renovations Begin on Historic Killefer School
- John C. Howell, Andrew N. Jordan, Barbara Soda, and Achim Kempf's article was published in the Physical Review Letters, "Super Interferometirc Range Resolution." Physics commentary about the article can be found here.
- Super Radar: Breakthrough radar research overcomes a nearly century-old trade-off between wavelength and distance resolution by Dr. John Howell
- The members of the Institute of Quantum Studies congratulate our Director, Yakir Aharonov,
for winning the 2023 Pomeranchuk prize in physics, together with Arcady Tseytlin.The Pomeranchuk Prize is an international award for theoretical physics, awarded annually
since 1998 by the Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics (ITEP) from Moscow.
It is named after the Russian physicist Isaak Yakovlevich Pomeranchuk, who together
with Landau established the Theoretical Physics department of the Institute.
- Andrew N. Jordan, Bibek Bhandari, Robert Czuprynaik, and Paolo Andrea Erdman's article in the Entropy Journal "Measurment-Based Quantum Thermal Machines with Feedback Control."
- Andrew N. Jordan and Alexia Auffeves work on quantum measurement was published in Physical Review Letters, "Energetic Cost of Measurements Using Quantum, Coherent, and Thermal Light."
- Andrew N. Jordan, Irfan Siddiqi, and Justin Dressel's work on quantum error correction
was published in Nature Communications, "Experimental demonstration of continuous quantum error correction."
- Read more about Andrew Jordan, the new Co-Director of the Institute for Quantum Studies, "Exploring Quantum Mysteries Drives Chapman Institute Toward Breakthroughs."
- IQS members Mordecai Waegell and Kelvin McQueen's work on Bell's theorem and the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics was featured in the New Scientist magazine article, "A classic quantum theorem may prove there are many parallel universes". The scientific article that this was based on, "Reformulating Bell's theorem: The search for a truly local quantum theory", was published in Studies in the History and Philosophy of Modern Physics in May 2020.
- IQS member Matt Leifer was interviewed on The Bus Driver Experience podcast by Brandon Reese. Listen to the episode now