Biography
Aaron Sternbach earned a B.A. degree in physics from Boston University where he investigated metamaterial assisted light-induced phase transitions. After studying at the University of California San Diego, Dr. Sternbach moved to Columbia University where he received a Ph.D in 2020. His thesis concerns the dynamics of quantum materials, investigated with ultrafast nano optical experimental methods. He was awarded the Townes Fellowship for his thesis work in 2019. After his thesis work he served as a Energy Frontiers Postdoctoral Fellow at Columbia University until 2023. He joined the University of Maryland as an an Assistant Professor in 2024. Dr. Sternbach's interests include the physics of optically driven Quantum Materials.
Research
The Sternbach lab adapts and uses optical technologies to explore the physics of quantum materials. Nano-optical probes enable a spatial resolution of about 10 nanometers from the far to near infrared (0.1-500 THz). These probes are used to explore phenomena including naturally occurring nano or mesoscale inhomogeneities. The momentum afforded by these probes is also leveraged to explore hybrid light-matter ‘polaritons’, which can propagate in, or at interfaces with, select quantum materials with sub-diffraction limited confinement. These techniques are used with pulsed light sources to explore transient states and interrogate non-linear properties of quantum matter.
Research Areas:
Centers & Institutes: Quantum Materials Center