Stimulating and collecting fluorescent signals from neurons using a chip, building smart sensors with brain-inspired hydrogel, creating more efficient and sustainable quantum computers: Clara Zaccaria, Alessio Lugnan and Alessio Baldazzi of the Physics Department of the University of Trento tell about their work on light particles and what they are trying to achieve. Together, the three have obtained funding for 500,000 euros from The Kavli Foundation, the Volkswagen Foundation and the start-up Rotonium to develop their projects