Steve Lamoreaux

Steve Lamoreaux is a Professor of Physics at Yale University.  He received his B.S. in 1981 from the University of Washington and M.S. from the University of Oregon in 1982.  He received his Ph.D. in 1986 from the University of Washington where he developed precision experimental techniques employing optically pumped mercury and applied those techniques to measurement of  spatial isotropy and time reversal symmetry.  He was a postdoc at the Institut Laue-Langevin in Grenoble, France where he worked on a U.S.-U.K. ultracold neutron electric dipole moment experiment (EDM) led by Prof. Norman Ramsey.  He returned to the U.W. where he became a Research Associate Professor and conducted research in ultracold neutrons, precision laser spectroscopy, and proposed a new technique to measure the neutron EDM which is currently being developed at the Oak Ridge Spallation Neutron Source.  He made the first high-accuracy measurement of the Casimir Force in 1996.  Steve moved to Los Alamos in Nov. 1996, where he became a Laboratory Fellow, and worked on quantum cryptography, quantum computing, ultracold neutron physics, and led the Dynamic Materials (Weapons Physics) Team which developed novel techniques for Stockpile Stewardship.  He joined the Yale  Department of Physics in 2006. He presently is the Principal Investigator of HAYSTAC (Haloscope at Yale Sensitive to Axion Cold Dark Matter).

His interest is in science, math, and electronics began at a very young age, being initially inspired by B science fiction movies and later the space race.  When in the 8th grade, he discovered higher level science books in the adult section of the city library; these books included The Book of Projects for the Amateur Scientist from Scientific American, The Analysis of Matter by Bertrand Russell, and The Quest for Absolute Zero by Kurt Mendelssohn; not that he understood everything (if anything) that he read (he still hopes to build a particle accelerator in his basement per the Scientific American plans), but he was hooked on physics.  At that time, he also became a licensed radio amateur (a hobby he still enjoys), and began applying his electronics skills to local rock bands often spending weekends operating the audio boards and lighting systems in various venues and dives around town.

His interests and hobbies include classic rock from the 50’s and 60’s (he has been a guest many times on the Carl J. Frano oldies radio show on WPKN), gardening, maintaining a house, and tinkering with radio and electronics in his basement shop.  His days of long distance running and boxing are over, but he maintains a home gym with a boxing dummy (Bob XL) and other equipment.