Hackathon

2. Electronic structure of silicon

Contributor: Seungjun Lee

This example introduces the electronic structure of crystalline solids using the tight-binding method. A description of the problem is available here, along with the corresponding Jupyter notebook here, and the instructional slides can be found here. The provided code produces the silicon band structures shown below, illustrating how extending the interaction range (from nearest-neighbor to longer-range couplings) improves the model’s ability to reproduce key features of silicon’s electronic bands.

3. Magnetization dynamics

Contributor: Duarte J. P. Sousa

A fundamental concept in spintronics is magnetization dynamics, which can be modeled using the Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert (LLG) equation. A description of the problem is available here, along with the corresponding Jupyter notebook for the lab here. The provided code visualizes the time evolution of the magnetization vector, highlighting two key behaviors: stable precession about the z-axis and full magnetization switching when the applied current exceeds a critical threshold.

4. The Jaynes Cummings model

    Contributor: Johnathas D. S. Forte 

This example introduces cavity QED through the Jaynes–Cummings model, which describes the coherent interaction between a two-level atom (qubit) and a single quantized cavity mode. Using the provided code (available here), students will compute and visualize the time-dependent expectation values of the cavity photon number and the atomic excitation probability, revealing the hallmark Rabi oscillations that reflect energy exchange between light and matter. The simulation also illustrates how adding dissipation leads to damping and energy leakage, connecting the idealized Jaynes–Cummings dynamics to realistic decoherence in experimental cavity-QED systems.

5. Quantum entanglement with CHSH inequality

    Contributor: Sami Ferrag

This example introduces quantum entanglement and nonclassical correlations through the CHSH inequality, a standard test of Bell’s theorem. Using the provided code (available here and here) and the problem description (here), students will construct simple two-qubit states (including entangled Bell states), choose measurement settings on each qubit, and compute the CHSH correlator S. By comparing separable and entangled states, you will see how classical (local hidden-variable) models satisfy, while quantum mechanics can violate this bound, thereby demonstrating experimentally relevant signatures of entanglement.

6. Quantum tunneling across barrier

    Contributors: Lily Andersen, Brandon Butenhoff, Sumayah Elmi, Patrick Miller, Nicholas Peterson

This example models quantum-coherent transport across a rectangular potential barrier. A description of the problem is provided here, and the accompanying notebook can be downloaded here. Students will solve the quantum-mechanical wavefunction and use it to compute the transmission probability as a function of barrier width, including the effect of Fermi occupation through appropriate weighting. The figure illustrates how the real part of the wavefunction evolves as the barrier width is varied, providing an intuitive visualization of quantum tunneling and its impact on transmission.

7. Graphene bandstructure

    Contributors: Brent Sohn, Kirnesh Kaushik, Raymond Zhao, Tony Skeps, and Isse C

This example models the electronic structure of graphene using a multi-orbital tight binding model. A description of the problem is provided here, and the accompanying notebook can be downloaded here. An eight-orbital Hamiltonian including both sublattices and nearest-neighbor hopping is diagonalized across the Brillouin zone, and orbital contributions are obtained by projecting the eigenstates onto the atomic orbital basis. The python results show that the low-energy π bands, including the Dirac cones at the K and K’ points, are dominated by 𝑝𝑧 orbitals, while the remaining orbitals form higher-energy 𝜎 bands.

8. Electrostatics of 2D semiconductor stack

    Contributors: Suhaas Batapatti, Jon Vigen, Iona Welsch, Krishna Jayswal, Trishya Chirakala

This example models the electrostatics of a 2D semiconductor. A description of the problem is provided here, and the accompanying notebook can be downloaded here. The animated plot that shows how the capacitance and carrier concentration vary as a function of an applied gate voltage in a 2D semiconductor-oxide stack.

9. Group, phase and signal velocities of wavepacket

    Contributors: Shawn Li, Christian Brennen, Adib Tawsif, Cohen Rautenkranz, Luke Sachse

This example models the propagation of a Gaussian wavepacket and highlights the distinction between group, phase, and signal velocities. A description of the problem is provided here, and the accompanying notebook can be downloaded here. The animation tracks the wavepacket as it evolves in time and shows how different reference points (e.g., the carrier phase, the envelope peak, and a signal marker) move at different speeds, enabling students to directly quantify and compare the group, phase, and signal velocities.

Projects & Grading

Based on the material taught during the first week, the students will be divided into groups of 2-4 members and develop a project that will be submitted by August 6 (Wednesday, second week) at 5pm. The projects shall follow the same structure as the material posted above:

1.  A LaTeX document following the provided template.

2. Submission of code with a deliverable plot or animation.

Grading will be broken down into four parts:

1. Working Python code

   • Code runs without errors

2. Evaluation of the 2 page paper

• Clarity  of the explanation

• Correctness of physical principles

3. Evaluation of the caption & image

   • Artistic value

   • Degree of insight presented

   • How well your output image can capture and illustrate the project's main idea

   • Caption should clearly describe what is being plotted and what the viewer can learn from your image

Send your submissions to: TBD