2019 MRS Fall Meeting & Exhibit

Symposium MQ03-Predictive Synthesis and Advanced Characterization of Emerging Quantum Materials

Quantum materials are a broad category of materials system in condensed matter physics, where the materials behaviors are governed by quantum phenomena that emerge from the complex interactions between the orbital, charge, orbital, lattice and spin degrees of freedom. In recent years, quantum materials are attracting enormous attention due to the enormous fundamental breakthroughs and meanwhile promising applications to achieve dissipationless electronic states.

Despite the complexity, one dominant driving force for quantum materials is the synthesis. For instance, the quantum Hall effect, high-Tc cuprate superconductors and the recently Fe-based superconductors are all first grown in lab with mechanism still not fully resolved. Synthesis of quantum materials always brings unexpected excitement. On the other hand, the characterization plays another key role to bridge the material to the very quantum property.

Given the central importance of synthesis and the rapid development of characterization methods in quantum materials, we feel obliged to organize a symposium to address the vast opportunities and challenges, that how the research of quantum materials can benefit from synthesis and a characterization perspective. We envision this symposium to highlight most recent progress, applications and forefront challenges in synthesizing various types of quantum materials, such as novel semiconductors and metals with non-trivial topology, in bulk, thin film and two-dimensional form. We emphasize the recent progress in materials characterization methods, such as angular-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), free electron laser, among other emerging novel spectroscopies. Particular attention will be paid on the strategy on synthesizing novel quantum materials, as well as the emerging new tools for quantum materials which are not available even a few years ago. The goal of this symposium is to provide an interactive forum to facilitate materials scientists in various fields to quickly digest the exciting recent progress of quantum materials with reduced knowledge barrier. Specific sessions will be organized regarding the scientific theme topics rather than with the similarity of a category of materials to benefit cross-fertilization. A couple of sessions will focus on recent methodological advances of the characterization capabilities to probe the charge, spin or lattice degrees of freedom with unprecedented detail.

Topics will include:

  • Bulk materials growth of topological insulators and semimetals to explore the nontrivial topology to materials functional properties.
  • Synthesis of novel correlated materials, such as unconventional superconducting materials and quantum spin liquids.
  • High-precision growth of thin films and heterostructures toward spintronic materials applications using molecular beam epitaxy.
  • Chemical vapor deposition of two-dimensional materials for fundamental quantum properties exploration.
  • State-of-the-art photoemission spectroscopies and their role for bandstructure studies.
  • State-of-the-art X-ray scattering to explore the interplay between the charge, spin and orbital degrees of freedom.
  • Neutron scattering measurement to study the magnetic properties and exotic excitations in materials.
  • Femtosecond to attosecond ultrafast free electron laser for materials properties far away from equilibrium.
  • Unconventional emerging materials characterization methods.
  • A tutorial complementing this symposium is tentatively planned.

Invited Speakers:

  • Danfeng Li (Stanford University, USA)
  • Thomas Tybell (Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway)
  • Jian Shi (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, USA)
  • Eduardo da Silva Neto (UC Davis, USA)
  • Olivier Delaire (Duke University, USA)
  • Marta Gibert (University of Geneva, Switzerland)
  • Paula Giraldo-Gallo (Universidad de Los Andes, Colombia)
  • Alexander Grutter (National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA)
  • Stephen Jesse (Oak Ridge National Lab, USA)
  • Tsuyoshi Kimura (University of Tokyo, Japan)
  • Alessandra Lanzara (UC Berkeley, USA)
  • Jeffrey Lynn (National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA)
  • Matteo Minola (Max Planck Insititute, Germany)
  • Laurens Molenkamp (University of Wuerzburg, Germany)
  • Julia Mundy (Harvard University, USA)
  • Stevan Nadj-Perge (California Institute of Technology, USA)
  • Tae Won Noh (Seoul National University, Republic of Korea)
  • Alan Tennant (Oak Ridge National Lab, USA)
  • John Tranquada (Brookhaven National Lab, USA)
  • Qikun Xue (Tsinghua University, China)

Symposium Organizers

Suchitra Sebastian
University of Cambridge
United Kingdom

Alex Frano
UC San Diego
USA

Mingda Li
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
USA

Publishing Alliance

MRS publishes with Springer Nature