18 | LEHIGH ALUMNI BULLETIN | FROM THE NEST After completing his first semester as an undergraduate student at Lehigh in 2021, Saimonth Muñoz ’26 began working for the Air National Guard as a radio frequency operator and became interested in learning how information is propagated through radio. He explored the theoretical physics behind it, which inspired him to pursue physics-related research at Lehigh and declare a physics major in addition to his electrical engineering major. This path—fueled by curiosity and motivation to solve societal challenges—led Muñoz to becoming one of just 441 college students across the United States to receive a prestigious Goldwater Scholarship in 2025. The Goldwater Scholarship program is designed to identify, encourage and financially support outstanding undergraduates interested in pursuing research careers in the sciences, engineering and mathematics, according to the Goldwater Scholarship website. Researching Rubrene At Lehigh, Muñoz conducts research on rubrene, an organic semiconductor that can transfer information through light, under quantum physicist Ivan Biaggio, professor and Joseph A. Waldschmitt Chair in Physics. Semiconductors are used to transfer information within devices. Advancements in semiconductors have caused them to shrink in size, which can lead to interference known as quantum mechanical tunneling, Muñoz said. Because of rubrene’s unique quantum mechanical properties, researchers are exploring it as an alternative way to transfer information for devices that may experience this interference, such as quantum computers. In Biaggio’s lab, Muñoz participates in experiments that involve the use of lasers to excite rubrene crystals, making them glow. The crystals absorb laser energy, their electrons get excited, then they go back to their ground state, releasing energy out in the form of light, Muñoz said. When rubrene absorbs light, it can create a pair of entangled excitons with opposite spin, meaning their quantum states are linked no matter how far apart they are. Interestingly, an applied magnetic field on the crystal has a notable effect on when it releases its light back out, Muñoz said. A magnetic field changes the quantum wave function and, in turn, the probability of the quantum entangled pairs joining back together and creating a boost in luminescence. When these entangled electron molecules merge together, under certain conditions, they will release a photon of light and, at a very high magnetic field, create a boost in luminescence, he said. Muñoz said the research team is studying the behavior of these excited particles and the probability at which they reunite, and are measuring how they evolve and interact over time. This research highlights the potential of condensed matter systems to contribute to fields such as quantum information science, particularly in quantum computing, and secure communication like cryptography, as well as renewable energy like solar technology. RESEARCH Student Earns Goldwater Scholarship Saimonth Muñoz ’26 is one of four Lehigh students in the past decade to receive the nationally competitive scholarship. CHRISTA NEU
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