Dr. David J. Dean is the Associate Laboratory Director (ALD) for the Physical Sciences Directorate (PSD) at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). In his role as ALD, Dr. Dean pursues excellence across the PSD broad physical sciences portfolio, with particular emphases on quantum materials; structural materials and alloys; soft materials; nanoscience; and applications of materials and chemistry in energy and security. He leads four research divisions: Materials Science and Technology, Chemical Sciences, Physics, and the Center for Nanophase Materials Science. He believes strongly in the linking of theory, computation, and data, and in using computing both to advance physics, materials, and chemistry and to develop the science that will undergird the future of computing. He will pursue forefront research and development using the Lab's leading neutron facilities, and he envisions continuing growth in ORNL's isotope production as well as in the partnerships that advance research with those isotopes.

Dr. Dean will be presenting a talk on "Approaching Quantum Computation."  How do we harness a novel quantum mechanical property in a material to perform computation?  This question lies at the multidisciplinary intersection of theoretical physcis, information theory, materials R&D and algorithm development.  In this talk we'll work to learn how the sometimes surprising and unexpected properties of quantum materials can be tailored to address technological needs and to dramatically improve the ability to synthesize, characterize, and control quantum materials.