Welcome!
We are investigating
topics in condensed matter physics that
span the range from hard to soft matter
research. Much of what we work on has
to do with studying the interactions between
many, more or less identical "building
blocks" that make up larger, complex
structures or show collective effects.
These building blocks in some cases are
macroscopic particles, such as glass beads
or seeds, and in other cases have nanoscale
dimensions, such as flux bundles in superconductors,
diblock copolymers, or nanocrystals. We
are particularly interested in studying
transitions that occur as a consequence
of collective effects, such as the transition
from static to moving configurations in
granular materials and the transitions
between insulating, metallic and superconducting
phases in mesoscopic, nanocrystalline
materials. The group uses a wide array
of experimental techniques, including
magnetic resonance imaging (in collaboration
with the Department of Radiology), x-ray
tomography (at Argonne's Advanced Photon
Source) and high-speed video for investigations
on granular materials, and optical or
electron-beam lithography, high-resolution
electron and scanning probe microscopies
as well as low-temperature (magneto-)
transport measurements for the study of
nanoscale materials.
Our Current
Research Areas:
|
|
Image Gallery (for
info click on the images; more and
higher resolution images here)
|
metal-decorated diblock copolymer
thin films
|
self-assembled array of gold nanoparticles,
each ~6nm in diameter
|
Impact of a Granular Jet: Emergence of a Liquid with Zero Surface Tension
|
Tightly Packed Molecules Lend Unexpected Strength To Nanothin Sheet of Material
|
granular convection
and size separation, imaged with MRI
|
copolymer film near electrode prior
to E-field alignment
|
MRI of jar filled with poppy seeds
|
granular jet, produced by dropping
a steel sphere into fine loose sand
|
