Many of Frank’s research efforts pursue opportunistic “one-off” ideas, but there are several enduring themes that continue to inspire him:
Axions are hypothetical particles whose existence would explain an otherwise bizarre “coincidence” in our core theories (standard model) of fundamental physics. Frank named axions, and believes in them. Axions are well suited to providing the mysterious cosmological dark matter. The game is afoot. More on Axions.
Anyons are a new, diverse class of emergent particles, named by Frank, that can arise in two-dimensional materials. They have a kind of primitive memory, which might make them useful for quantum information processing. More on Anyons.
Unification of the plethora of particles and forces which feature in our core theories is an inspiring prospect, which Frank’s work has brought within sight. We’re still getting there. More on unification of particles.
Time Crystals are systems or phases of matter that manifest spontaneous activity. Frank, in collaboration with Al Shapere, introduced and named this concept in 2012. At present is intense, exciting ferment, both theoretical and experimental, in this area. More on Time Crystals.
Quantum History and Entanglement is a very recent addition to Frank’s research portfolio. The most basic question is this: Since measuring a quantum system disturbs its state, to what extent is its history an observable phenomenon? In addressing it, we’ve been led to explore entanglement and exotic measurement procedures more generally. More on Quantum Entanglement.
