He earned his doctorate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he began his research in ultracold atomic physics, in which lasers and magnetic fields used together can make atoms a billion times colder than air. Under those conditions, atomic gases behave like lasers and can be used to model more complex systems and to improve fundamental measurements. He has been at the UW since 2007, where he is working on ultracold atoms and molecules for studies of new quantum systems, the development of quantum computers and precise tests for fundamental theories in physics.