Shankari Rajagopal

Shankari Rajagopal serves as the Harold C. Early Physics Early Career Professor and Assistant Professor of Physics at the University of Michigan's Physics Department. Her laboratory operates within the Randall Lab and Homer A. Neal Lab facilities at 450 Church Street, Ann Arbor.

Her research centers on quantum systems engineering through hybrid cold atom experiments featuring Rydberg atom arrays coupled with optical cavity photonic modes. This work enables precise spatiotemporal control of atomic trapping potentials, interatomic interactions, and quantum measurements. Key research domains include:

• Quantum simulation of materials
• Quantum metrology for precision measurement
• Implementation of quantum optimization algorithms
• Non-equilibrium quantum dynamics
• Quantum feedback control systems

Rajagopal actively advances equity in physics through American Physical Society initiatives, having co-chaired the 2019 Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics Local Organizing Committee. She participates in APS-IDEA network activities, DEI committees focused on graduate student orientation, and conducts STEM outreach at K-12 institutions.

Her laboratory, established in January 2025, currently includes members Riva Jangra (joined June 2025), Yiyi Zhu and Jacob Lepley (May 2025), Liam Daly (May 2025), and Hsu Ting Tung (March 2025). The group recruits graduate students and postdoctoral researchers for experimental work with cold atoms and quantum systems.