Quantum systems under frequency modulation.

We review the physical phenomena that arise when quantum mechanical energy levels are modulated in time. The dynamics resulting from changes in the transition frequency is a problem studied since the early days of quantum mechanics. It has been of constant interest both experimentally and theoretically since, with the simple two-state model providing an inexhaustible source of novel concepts.

Lifshitz Transition in the Double-Core Vortex in ^{3}He-B.

We study the spectrum of fermion states localized within the vortex core of a weak-coupling p-wave superfluid. The low energy spectrum consists of two anomalous branches that generate a large density of states at the locations of the half cores of the vortex. Fermi liquid interactions significantly stretch the vortex structure, which leads to a Lifshitz transition in the effective Fermi surface of the vortex core fermions.

Motional averaging in a superconducting qubit.

Superconducting circuits with Josephson junctions are promising candidates for developing future quantum technologies. Of particular interest is to use these circuits to study effects that typically occur in complex condensed-matter systems. Here we employ a superconducting quantum bit--a transmon--to perform an analogue simulation of motional averaging, a phenomenon initially observed in nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

Pendulum in a Fermi liquid.

The Fermi-liquid theory formulated by Landau is a basic paradigm of the behavior of an interacting many-body system. We present a new application of this theory to calculate the "Landau force" on a macroscopic object. We show that immersing a pendulum in a Fermi liquid can increase its oscillation frequency, and evidence of this has been observed in mixtures of (3)He and (4)He.

Stark effect and generalized Bloch-Siegert shift in a strongly driven two-level system.

A superconducting qubit was driven in an ultrastrong fashion by an oscillatory microwave field, which was created by coupling via the nonlinear Josephson energy. The observed Stark shifts of the "atomic" levels are so pronounced that corrections even beyond the lowest-order Bloch-Siegert shift are needed to properly explain the measurements. The quasienergies of the dressed two-level system were probed by resonant absorption via a cavity, and the results are in agreement with a calculation based on the Floquet approach.