Gustavo Rigolin

Gustavo Rigolin

Full Professor (Tenured)

Quantum Information and Quantum Mechanics (Theoretical)

B. S. Degree in Physics (March/2001) obtained at State University of Campinas, Brazil

PhD in Physics (April/2005) obtained at State University of Campinas, Brazil    

Post Doctoral Positions: State University of Campinas (2005/2007); Indiana University, Bloomington (2007/2008)

Previous Position: Assistant Professor (Tenure-track) at Federal University of Sao Carlos, Brazil (2009/2012)

Previous Position: Assistant Professor (Tenured) at Federal University of Sao Carlos, Brazil (2012/2017)

Previous Position: Associate Professor (Tenured) at Federal University of Sao Carlos, Brazil (2017/2025)

Current Position: Full Professor (Tenured) at Federal University of Sao Carlos, Brazil (March/2025)

Affiliation: Department of Physics, Federal University of Sao Carlos (UFSCar)

Address: Rodovia Washington Luiz, km 235, Caixa Postal 676, CEP 13565-905 - Sao Carlos - SP - Brazil

Phone: +55-16-3351-9345

Email: rigolin@ufscar.br

Research Group site: Fundamental Physics Group

Brief Description of Research Interests

Putting it simply, the goal of Physics is to understand the properties and inter-relations among all constituents that make the universe. The framework on which a physicist tries to address such a big problem is quite interesting and, surprisingly, can be cast using three fundamental assumptions. (1) Mathematics is the best language to tackle any problem. (2) Use as few hypothesis as possible to describe and predict as many as possible natural phenomena. (3) Nature (experiment) is the supreme judge; whatever one predicts, she has the ultimate answer to whether or not it is true and correct.

Among the few successful theories that a physicist has at her/his disposal is quantum mechanics (QM), whose main goal is the description of the microscopic world. It is the best tool we have to address the physics of atoms and molecules and, so far, no serious experiment has ever contradicted it. A peculiar aspect of QM, which separates it from all other important physical theories, is its "strange" and apparently "nonsensical" description for the behavior of  particles and waves. The quest to understand this "weirdness" of QM from a fundamental and conceptual point of view, and the quest to figure out ways to make practical use of these non-trivial effects, summarize my long term and broad research goals. 

Among the many counterintuitive concepts of QM, quantum entanglement is the one that I am most fond of. I believe the study of qualitative and quantitative aspects of entanglement constitutes an important branch, if not the backbone, of QM. Why do I think so? On the one hand, entanglement plays a key role on the foundations of QM, as can be seen by its importance, for example, in the non-local aspects of it. On the other hand, since the 1990's, it became clear that entangled quantum systems also play an important practical role. Indeed, the majority of quantum communication protocols, many of them already realized experimentally, and the quantum computer, rely on the precise and controlled manipulations of entangled states (click here for a lecture about entanglement).

It is within this context that my specific research goals lie. I am currently working with subjects that are particular aspects of quantum information theory (QIT). QIT is a multidisciplinary new field of research aiming to apply QM to efficiently process and transmit information. It is a dynamical and active field of research with many exciting problems waiting to be tackled. In particular, one wants to outperform the best strategies classically available to process and transmit information.  On the other hand, one can also use concepts from classical information theory and computation to better understand QM. It is this two-way road that most interests me.  Although many conceptual and practical questions remain to be answered within the field of QIT, there is a lot to be gained when the new techniques of QIT are applied to other fields of Physics. It is with this interdisciplinary spirit that my research interests and goals are constructed.

For further information on my research topics, please follow this link.

See also the following lecture for a not too technical overview about entangled states (click here).

Selected Publications

1. Galilean relativity and wave-particle duality imply the Schrödinger equation

G. Rigolin , Phys. Rev. A 109, 052209 (2024). (read)

2. Asymmetric particle-antiparticle Dirac equation: second quantization

G. Rigolin ,  J. Phys. G: Nucl. Part. Phys. 50, 125005 (2023). (read)

3. Asymmetric particle-antiparticle Dirac equation: first quantization

G. Rigolin ,  J. Phys. G: Nucl. Part. Phys. 50, 125003 (2023). (read)

4. On Lorentz Invariant Complex Scalar Fields

G. Rigolin, Advances in High Energy Physics 2022, Article ID 5511428 (2022) (read)

5. Quantum Corralling

R. Vieira, G. Rigolin, and Edgard P. M. Amorim, Phys. Rev. A 104, 032224 (2021). (read)

6. Asymptotic security analysis of teleportation-based quantum cryptography

D. Lima and G. Rigolin, Quantum Inf. Process. 19, 201 (2020). (read)

7. Almost perfect transmission of multipartite entanglement through disordered and noisy spin chains

R. Vieira and G. Rigolin, Phys. Lett. A 384, 126536 (2020). (read)

8. Fighting noise with noise in realistic quantum teleportation

R. Fortes and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. A 92, 012338 (2015). (read)

9. Degenerate adiabatic perturbation theory: Foundations and applications

G. Rigolin and G. Ortiz, Phys. Rev. A 90, 022104 (2014). (read)

10. Entangling power of disordered quantum walks

R. Vieira, E. P. M. Amorim, and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. A 89, 042307 (2014). (read)

11. Dynamically disordered quantum walk as a maximal entanglement generator

R. Vieira, E. P. M. Amorim, and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. Lett.  111, 180503 (2013). (read)

12. Adiabatic theorem for quantum systems with spectral degeneracy

G. Rigolin and G. Ortiz, Phys. Rev. A 85, 062111 (2012). (read)

13. Spotlighting quantum critical points via quantum correlations at finite temperatures

T. Werlang, G.A.P. Ribeiro, and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. A. 83, 062334 (2011). (read)

14. Quantum correlations in spin chains at finite temperatures and quantum phase transitions

T. Werlang, C. Trippe, G.A.P. Ribeiro, and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 095702 (2010). (read)

15. Adiabatic perturbation theory and geometric phases for degenerate systems

G. Rigolin and G. Ortiz, Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 170406 (2010). (read)

16. Thermal and magnetic quantum discord in Heisenberg models

T. Werlang and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. A 81, 044101 (2010). (read)

17. Unity fidelity multiple teleportation using partially entangled states

G. Rigolin, J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 42, 235504 (2009). (read)

18. Beyond the quantum adiabatic approximation: adiabatic perturbation theory

G. Rigolin, G. Ortiz, and V.H. Ponce, Phys. Rev. A 78, 052508 (2008). (read)

19. Multipartite entanglement signature of quantum phase transitions

T.R. de Oliveira, G. Rigolin, M.C. de Oliveira, and E. Miranda, Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 170401 (2006). (read)

20. Operational classification and quantification of multipartite entangled states

G. Rigolin, T.R. de Oliveira, M.C. de Oliveria, Phys. Rev. A 74, 022314 (2006). (read)

21. Generalized quantum state sharing

G. Gordon and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. A 73, 062316 (2006). (read)

22. Generalized teleportation protocol

G. Gordon and G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. A 73, 042309 (2006). (read)

23. Genuine multipartite entanglement in quantum phase transitions

G. Rigolin, T.R. de Oliveira, M.C. de Oliveria, Phys. Rev. A 73, 010305(R) (2006). (read)

24. Quantum teleportation of an arbitrary two qubit state and its relation to multipartite entanglement

G. Rigolin, Phys. Rev. A 71, 032303 (2005). (read)

25. Entanglement versus chaos in disorderd spin chains

L.F. Santos, G. Rigolin, and C.O. Escobar, Phys. Rev. A 69, 042304 (2004). (read)

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