[ad_1]
The scientist, who traveled the world from Anykščiai to California, claims that his return to Lithuania was motivated not only by feelings, but also by the search for meaning.
“You need to listen to your heart and its desires; if someone is strange to you and someone is close to you, you must do what is most pleasant and closest to your heart. Science is close to me,” says A. Alkauskas.
– What prompted you to choose the path of a physicist?
– Physics always begins with something else; after all, we started learning math in school first, and only then other natural sciences. I discovered it through mathematics and astronomy, but I cannot identify which of these sciences was the first to arouse interest in physics. It can be said that there were two paths that led me to where I am now.
At school I really liked math, but my twin brother loved it too and did better at this school. So my choice was probably the following: if my brother is doing better in math, which I also like, I have to choose a nearby field, but not the same one.
On the other hand, when I was a child I was interested in astronomy: the stars, their structure, observations. Naturally, this has turned into an interest in what’s a little closer to the ground. As I can reconstruct now, I found myself in physics.
– You finished your studies in Lithuania, but then you went abroad, where you defended your doctorate, and then you worked. What were the reasons for the decision to return to Lithuania?
– A factor never determines such a decision: any important choice in life comes after considering many reasons, and such decisions always have both positive and negative aspects. It was a big step to leave Lithuania, but I think it is easier to leave Lithuania than to return to it. Finally, after considering everything, I realized that there are more advantages that I see when I return: here are my close friends.
Of course, I see the financial aspect as a disadvantage, moreover, the entire scientific space in Lithuania is not strong enough yet. I can’t say that there are no good universities in Lithuania, but of course you are not always surrounded by the most talented and talented scientists in the world. One of the compelling reasons for returning was the desire to assemble a scientific team that was competitive and internationally valued.
There are two completely different things to do world-class research in the US and Lithuania. In America you will be just one of many, but in Lithuania you will feel that your work is much more meaningful.
– You are currently a teacher at KTU. How did you get to the University?
– I have been involved with KTU for a long time. I come from Anykščiai, but for the last three years I studied at the student campus, the KTU gym. During the gym’s 25th anniversary celebration in 2014, I met Bronė Narkevičienė, Dean of the KTU Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (KTU MGMF), who invited me to work at the faculty.
Photo by KTU / Vidmantas Povilas Pekarskas, Bronė Narkevičienė, Audrius Alkauskas
The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences is right in front of the gym, I saw it every day when I went to class. Probably, if I hadn’t studied in high school, I wouldn’t have chosen to work here. He also wanted to pay tribute to the University. I think it can be said that my connection to the University was established through the KTU gym and feelings for the teenage city of Kaunas.
– In 2019, your work and that of your colleagues to determine the nature of quantum emitters in 2D semiconductors appeared on the cover of Applied Physics Letters magazine. Can you tell us what is the significance of this discovery? Will everyday consumers face this discovery of yours?
– The credit for the article on the cover goes to my PhD student Mažena Mackoit-Sinkevičienė, who creates fantastic images. When the magazine editor saw the image, he immediately suggested using it on the cover and we agreed.
Well, broadly speaking, this discovery has to do with quantum technology, or more precisely, quantum communication. The discovery itself relates to a specific substance, boron nitride, in which emitters (little “bulbs”) can be used to send quantum keys. However, so far it has not been clear what kind of nuclear system lurks beneath that “emitter.” I had the idea to test one system, the carbon dimer defect, and after long calculations with colleagues, we discovered that the hypothesis was correct and we determined which atomic structure determines the signal seen in the experiment.
However, even though our published article appeared on the cover of a magazine, the discovery itself is not yet a technology, it is only the beginning.
– Still, seeing your name on the cover of a magazine or on television for an ordinary person is often a certain achievement. How do you see this yourself?
– It is, of course, a pleasant achievement, but also a commitment. If you are already doing something (creating, modeling, calculating) but don’t develop it further, you fall behind science. Often times a good idea or a serious discovery is not enough, especially in science. You have to be determined to keep working with it, because otherwise it may not only drown among other good ideas, but be developed by other scientists, and you yourself miss a good opportunity to be at the forefront of science.
– As for the cutting edge of science, are you developing this discovery further or are you passing it on to someone else?
– Yes, we continue working with colleagues, we are developing this idea, we are working both with the above and with other materials. I think that if, as a researcher, you find something in an area of interest that catches your attention, you discover something new, valuable and you keep working with it. When you dig into something, there is often even more to discover. Of course, this is not easy. Sometimes you have to make a mistake, not finding an answer can even bang your head against the wall, try again, but when you get the result, the feeling is invaluable.
– In addition to the above, what other projects are you developing?
– We are currently participating in a European Union project with a team to develop diamond-based magnetic sensors. By removing two carbon atoms from a diamond and replacing them with a nitrogen atom, almost the smallest but very useful magnets out there can be created. In this project, devices are already being manufactured to measure temperature, pressure, magnetic fields or even current changes in neurons.
I myself am a physicist-theorist. I prefer to get away from technology a bit more and be more involved in developing a methodology, like writing a program that can then be used elsewhere.
Therefore, the works of our team are not only various scientific articles, but also computer programs, which are not new technologies in themselves, but can be used for the development of technology-specific products.
– What scientific achievement are you most proud of during your career?
– At present, I am very proud of two: the idea of applying certain advanced quantum mechanical calculations to point out defects in solids, and the methodology developed to calculate spectra of solids if they contain impurities. A good example of this is the ruby. If you have, in this case, a white sapphire, but you put it in chrome, you will get a red ruby. The redness comes from a chromium impurity, but when viewed in detail, red has a certain peculiar spectrum that is not so easy to calculate. While still working in America, I developed a fairly accurate way of counting that spectrum.
Although in fact, perhaps I am not as proud of these achievements as I am simply glad that I was able to be a part of their discovery. And now I hope that the main achievements are in the future.
[ad_2]
