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Oka Lab
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A theoretical lab exploring nonequilibrium quantum physics, in which the properties of matter are controlled with light.
AboutAbout the lab
Finding the “mechanism” behind a phenomenon and turning it into a function
Oka Lab conducts theoretical research that discovers and understands the “mechanisms” hidden behind complex physical phenomena, and proposes the emergence of functions that make use of them.
So far, the lab has focused mainly on nonequilibrium quantum many-body systems, including proposing Floquet engineering of quantum materials and developing nonequilibrium field theory.
As future priorities, the lab is also considering microscopic and mesoscopic theories of biological phenomena and applications of field theory to information physics.
Lab meetings are held mainly in English, and students from diverse backgrounds are welcome.
Key terms
- Floquet Engineering
- A method of changing the properties of a material or creating new states by applying a periodically oscillating external field, such as a laser.
- Topology
- An approach that focuses on properties that do not change when a shape is slightly deformed. It is also used to classify the electronic states of materials.
- Dirac Electrons
- Electrons in a solid that behave as if they were massless.
NewsLab news
Paper on Floquet driving of enzymatic reactions by doctoral students and others released
Prof. Oka receives the “Inoue Prize for Science” (Inoue Foundation for Science)
Prof. Oka receives the 42nd Inoue Prize for Science
Paper by Prof. Oka and colleagues published in Journal of the Physical Society of Japan
Paper by Prof. Oka and colleagues published in Physical Review B
ResearchResearch themes
The lab carries out theoretical research centered on nonequilibrium quantum many-body systems. Built around Floquet theory, which controls the properties of quantum materials with temporally periodic external fields such as lasers, the research extends even to periodically driven chemical reactions.
*Illustrative imageFloquet Topological States
The lab studies theories that dynamically change topology, which has long been thought to be fixed when a material is synthesized, using periodic external fields such as lasers. It works with theoretical models in which electrons dressed with light (Floquet states) are created and their topology is controlled by the laser's intensity, polarization, and frequency.
*Illustrative imageRelativistic Floquet Engineering of Dirac Electrons
The lab analyzed the electronic states of Dirac electron systems driven by traveling waves such as laser light and surface acoustic waves. By classifying the cases into three according to the speed of the traveling wave, it has shown that each has characteristic electronic states and that Floquet-Weyl bands emerge.
*Illustrative imageFloquet Driving of Enzymatic Reactions
Against the background of advances in technologies for artificially controlling chemical reactions, the lab built a Floquet theory for chemical reaction systems in which the reaction rate changes periodically. Using a model of an enzymatic reaction, it analyzes the steady flow generated by periodic driving.
MembersFaculty
Oka Lab's members consist of faculty, postdoctoral researchers, doctoral and master's students, research fellows, and secretaries.As of 2026
- ProfessorTakashi OkaPublications ↗
- Assistant ProfessorTokiro Numasawa
- Assistant ProfessorHan Yan
- Project Assistant ProfessorSwati Chaudhary
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Laser Beam Splitter” melissa.meister from Atlanta, USA / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Floquet Topological States: “Circular.Polarization.Circularly.Polarized.Light Without.Components Right.Handed” Dave3457 / Public domain (cropped)
- Relativistic Floquet Engineering of Dirac Electrons: “Electronic band structure of graphene” Ponor / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Floquet Driving of Enzymatic Reactions: “ADENYLYL CYCLASE” Bone117 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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