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Hanai Lab
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The lab theoretically explores nonequilibrium many-body systems in which the law of action and reaction is broken.
AboutAbout the lab
Exploring a world where the law of action and reaction breaks down.
The Hanai Lab theoretically studies phenomena that appear in "nonequilibrium" many-body systems driven from the outside.
In nonequilibrium systems, the principle of free-energy minimization that holds for matter in thermal equilibrium does not hold in general.
In particular, the lab focuses on "nonreciprocal" interactions that break the law of action and reaction, and explores physics common to systems ranging from ecosystems to electrons in solids.
The lab deals with a wide range of subjects, from artificial quantum systems such as ultracold atomic gases to active matter and living systems.
Key terms
- Nonequilibrium
- A state in which energy or particles continue to be supplied from outside, so the system does not settle into thermal equilibrium
- Nonreciprocal interaction
- An interaction in which action and reaction are not balanced, as when A is attracted to B while B moves away from A
- Phase transition
- A phenomenon in which the state of matter changes drastically when conditions such as temperature are changed, like water turning into ice
NewsLab news
Associate Professor Hanai won the Condensed Matter Science Prize (Theory Category)
In collaboration with Okayama University and Kyoto University, the lab proposed a theory for breaking the law of action and reaction with light
ResearchResearch themes
The lab theoretically studies phenomena that emerge when interacting quantum and classical many-body systems are driven out of equilibrium. It deals with a wide range of subjects, from artificial quantum systems such as ultracold atomic gases and superconducting circuits, to solids strongly excited by light, active matter, and ecosystems.
*Illustrative imageThe physics of nonreciprocal frustration
With nonreciprocal interactions, as between predator and prey, the "wishes" of both sides cannot be fulfilled at the same time. The lab found that this corresponds directly to geometric frustration.
*Illustrative imageNonreciprocal phase transitions
The lab extended Landau theory to nonequilibrium systems in which a free energy cannot be defined, and showed that a new kind of phase transition appears that does not follow the principle of energy minimization.
*Illustrative imageBreaking the law of action and reaction with light
The lab proposed a way to make the interactions between electrons in solids nonreciprocal using light. It showed that the system changes into a state in which the magnetizations of a bilayer magnet "chase" each other.
*Illustrative imageThe puzzle of exciton-polariton condensates
For condensates of particles in which light and electron-hole pairs are strongly coupled, the lab built a theory that incorporates nonequilibrium effects and explained two observations that had long been regarded as puzzles.
MembersFaculty
- Associate ProfessorRyo HanaiPublications ↗
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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: “A starling murmuration - geograph.org.uk - 6389346” Walter Baxter / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- The physics of nonreciprocal frustration: “Predator&Prey” Rathika Ramasamy / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Nonreciprocal phase transitions: “Fish school (Unsplash)” Milada Vigerova / CC0 (cropped)
- Breaking the law of action and reaction with light: “Crookes radiometer J1” Jamain / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- The puzzle of exciton-polariton condensates: “Newton interference rings” Alexander Penn / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (髭本研究室): “J-PARC muon experiment area” Kestrel / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (賀川研究室): “Meissner effect p1390048” Mai-Linh Doan / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (松尾研究室): “Dilution Refrigerator ( )” UCL Mathematical & Physical Sciences from London, UK / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (関澤研究室): “Crab Nebula” NASA, ESA, J. Hester and A. Loll (Arizona State University) / Public domain (cropped)
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