Personal profile
Personal profile
Office: W153
Office phone: +44(0) 1784 276877
Email: [email protected]
Homepage: http://www.xrojaslab.org/
Educational background
Graduated from Université Pierre et Marie Curie, France in 2012. I then did a postdoc at University of Alberta, Canada for 3 year before joining the Ultra-low temperature group at Royal Holloway. Since October 2016, I am a Royal Society University Research Fellow at Royal Holloway.
Research interests
My research activities are organised around 3 main topics:
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Superfluid Optomechanics:
We are developing a new class of cavity optomechanical systems based on superfluid helium confined into nanofluidic acoustic resonators. Superfluid helium is an exotic material demonstrating unique properties, such as extremely low energy dissipation at low temperature. Our new devices will allow us to explore the ultimate limits of quantum mechanics applied to engineered mechanical systems. -
Topological Superfluidity:
Using recent progress in quantum nanofluidics, we are developing a new platform to study topological superfluidity of helium-three confined into nanofabricated geometries, as a model system for topological quantum matter. -
Nano-Electro-Mechanical Systems:
We are developing new nanomechanical structures and high sensitivity measurement techniques compatible with the ultra-low temperature environment, to explore the quantum regime of mechanical systems. In addition, we study quantum fluids fundamental properties using these very sensitive mechanical probes.
Affiliations
2016-Present: Royal Society University Research Fellow
Department of Physics, Royal Holloway University of London, UK
2015-2016: Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Department of Physics, Royal Holloway University of London, UK
2012-2015: Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Department of Physics, University of Alberta, Canada
2008-2011: Doctorate
Department of Physics, Ecole Normale Supérieure, France
Keywords
- Solid-state physics
- superfluid
- quantum mechanics
- optomechanics
- nanofluidics
- quantum fluids
- topological superfluids
- topological matter
- helium
- NMR
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Chiral superfluid helium-3 in the quasi-two-dimensional limit
Heikkinen, P., Levitin, L., Rojas, X., Singh, A., Eng, N., Casey, A., Saunders, J., Vorontsov, A., Zhelev, N., Sebastian, A. T. & Parpia, J., 31 Mar 2025, In: Physical Review Letters. 134, 13, 8 p., 136001.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Dark matter attenuation effects: sensitivity ceilings for spin-dependent and spin-independent interactions
The QUEST-DMC collaboration, 8 Apr 2025, In: Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics. 2025, 4, 017.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Magnetic Confinement of a Bubble of Supercooled 3He-A
Whitehead, L., Casey, A., Haley, R. P., Heikkinen, P. J., Levitin, L. V., Mayer, A. J., Rojas, X., Salmon, T., Saunders, J., Thomson, A., Zmeev, D. E. & Autti, S., 27 Aug 2025, In: Journal of Low Temperature Physics. 221, p. 249-255 7 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Nanofluidic Platform for Studying the First-Order Phase Transitions in Superfluid Helium-3
Heikkinen, P. J., Eng, N., Levitin, L. V., Rojas, X., Singh, A., Autti, S., Haley, R. P., Hindmarsh, M., Zmeev, D. E., Parpia, J. M., Casey, A. & Saunders, J., Jun 2024, In: Journal of Low Temperature Physics. 215, p. 477-494 18 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile42 Downloads (Pure) -
Optomechanically Induced Transparency/Absorption in a 3D Microwave Cavity Architecture at Ambient Temperature
Kumar, S., Kenworthy, M., Ginn, H. & Rojas, X., 5 Mar 2024, In: AIP Advances. 14, 3, 5 p., 035107.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile62 Downloads (Pure)
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SquBa: Silencing the noise in quantum circuits by a Quantum fluid Bath
Saunders, J. (PI), Casey, A. (CoI), Levitin, L. (CoI), Rojas, X. (CoI), Antonov, V. (CoI), Shaikhaidarov, R. (CoI) & Tzalenchuk, A. (CoI)
Eng & Phys Sci Res Council EPSRC
1/05/24 → 30/04/27
Project: Research
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Superfluid Optomechanics for Quantum Sensing Applications
Rojas, X. (Fellow)
1/04/22 → 31/03/25
Project: Research
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Research Fellows Enhanced Research Expenses 2021
Rojas, X. (Fellow)
1/04/21 → 31/03/23
Project: Research
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QUEST-DMC: Quantum Enhanced Superfluid Technologies for Dark Matter and Cosmology
Casey, A. (PI), Monroe, J. (CoI), West, S. (CoI), Saunders, J. (CoI) & Rojas, X. (CoI)
1/12/20 → 31/03/25
Project: Research
Datasets
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Accompanying data for "Fragility of surface states in topological superfluid 3He"
Heikkinen, P. (Creator), Casey, A. (Creator), Levitin, L. (Creator), Rojas, X. (Creator), Vorontsov, A. (Creator), Sharma, P. (Contributor), Zhelev, N. (Contributor), Parpia, J. (Contributor) & Saunders, J. (Supervisor), Royal Holloway, University of London, 18 Jan 2021
DOI: 10.17637/rh.12777620
Dataset
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Accompanying data for "Chiral superfluid helium-3 in the quasi-two-dimensional limit"
Heikkinen, P. (Creator), Levitin, L. (Creator), Rojas, X. (Contributor), Singh, A. (Contributor), Eng, N. (Contributor), Vorontsov, A. (Creator), Zhelev, N. (Contributor), Abhilash, T. S. (Contributor), Parpia, J. (Supervisor), Casey, A. (Supervisor) & Saunders, J. (Supervisor), Royal Holloway, University of London, 17 Sept 2024
DOI: 10.17637/rh.27020611, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.134.136001
Dataset