Two Harry S. Truman Fellows are undertaking research to translate advanced quantum optical principles from laboratory concepts into scalable, manufacturable devices.
Truman Fellow Sam Peana focuses on quantum photonics research. As a doctoral student, he contributed to a team thaat identified a novel single-photon emitter found in silicon nitride-oxide materials. He subsequently developed techniques for creating these emitters at precise locations using standard semiconductor fabrication methods. This breakthrough could enable conventional foundries to manufacture quantum optical components at industrial scale alongside traditional microelectronics. Peana’s current work centers on improving the efficiency and performance of these devices for potential use in quantum computing, communications, and sensing applications. While many quantum technologies remain confined to research laboratories, scaling up manufacturing represents a critical step toward practical deployment.
Peana completed his PhD in electrical engineering at Purdue, graduating in May 2024.
- Sam Peana, Ph.D. discusses his research on nanostructured single-photon emitters with National Science Foundation Director Sethuraman Panchanathan during a visit to the Birck Nanotechnology Center. [Purdue University photo/Kelsey Ann Lefever]
Truman Fellow Dan Herman specializes in optical frequency comb technology. During his doctoral research at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, he partnered with agricultural researchers from Kansas State University to create improved methods for monitoring livestock emissions. “This collaboration yielded a method that can accurately track methane and ammonia flux from farms with minimal external calibration,” he said in Sandia Lab News. This technology now helps scientists better characterize greenhouse gas emissions from grazing livestock, an area that previously lacked comprehensive data.
For his Truman Fellowship, Herman plans to adapt frequency comb systems for remote environmental monitoring and ecological research. His work will also involve creating high-speed spectroscopy tools for laboratory use and exploring quantum sensing applications of frequency comb technology.
- Truman Fellow Dan Herman adjusts the current of an optical amplifier within an electro-optic frequency comb system. [Photo by Craig Fritz/Sandia]
Herman completed his doctoral studies in Atomic/Molecular Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder, with his PhD conferred in May 2022. Before serving as a Truman Fellow at Sandia National Laboratories, he undertook a postdoctoral associate position at the University of Colorado Boulder.
Established in 2004, Sandia’s President Harry S. Truman Postdoctoral Fellowship in National Security Science and Engineering serves to attract highly qualified recent Ph.D. graduates who propose novel research ideas. Each three-year appointment includes a competitive salary, comprehensive benefits, and a substantial discretionary research budget of up to $100,000 annually. Fellows are afforded significant autonomy, including access to Sandia’s extensive resources and facilities across its New Mexico and California campuses. Fellows define their own research projects in collaboration with a senior mentor and are expected to publish, patent and develop prototypes that contribute to the lab’s mission.
The program’s alumni have consistently produced influential work. For instance, 2024 fellows Matthew Barry is focusing on machine-learning shortcuts for multiscale materials models, and Jonathan Paras was working on next-generation metal manufacturing. They follow 2022 fellows like Alicia Magann, who was developing a “quantum information science toolkit,” and Gabriel Shipley, who investigated 3-D instabilities on the Z machine.
