A New Surgical Microscope for Materials Physics Research
Our lab investigates how electrons behave in solids — such as crystals, glasses, metals, superconductors, van-der-Waals (2D) materials, spin-liquid magnets, charge-ordered oxides and amorphous Anderson insulators — and the fundamental physical processes that generate them. Using both experimental and computational / numerical projects, we develop models for and new physical insight into the tiny universes of solid materials.
In the lab, we synthesize and study materials grown using a range of techniques, from scotch-tape exfoliation to atomic force microscopy, but one of the best ways to learn about materials is (still) with optical microscopy - just by looking. This semester, our lab is setting up, adapting, and testing a brand new (still-in-box!) ophthalmological microscope*, and students will lead each of those pieces.
*Learn more here: https://www.leica-microsystems.com/products/surgical-microscopes/p/leica-m822-f20/
The microscope will support active and ongoing research projects in the lab; these include (1) exfoliation and microscopic characterization of 2D “Van der Waals” materials like graphene, (2) measurement and microscopic modeling of the electrical conductivity and Hall effect in inhomogeneous systems, and (3) examining the effects of disorder on thin-film materials (in collaboration with Caltech and other institutions). Independent research projects in the lab require more than one academic semester or summer of active work.
Note: If interested, you should complete the remainder of the application, but do not submit an essay. Instead, you should EMAIL THE PI (Nicholas Breznay) to indicate your interest, any relevant experience you have, and available afternoon(s) that you could spend in the lab. Finally, please do not use AI resources when you get in touch - whether in person or electronically, the research in our lab requires authentic, imperfect, and honest communication.
You are excited to explore and understand how the physics and STEM concepts you learned in the classroom can be used to explain the “social structures” of electrons in solid materials. You are drawn to work on projects that are naturally collaborative and interdisciplinary, bridging the fields of physics, materials science, chemistry, and engineering! You are committed to ask questions and build your own conceptual models for the mini-universes of crystalline and disordered materials, and to systematically record and clearly communicate this work and your understanding. You are ready to work with advanced instruments, develop new procedures, read primary literature reports, document your work, and participate fully with the group in a safe and thoughtful manner. You are excited to present new-found understanding in the form of group meeting presentations and journal clubs, and to work towards communicating results with posters and conference presentations, peer-reviewed publications, and public outreach.