Physics (Internal)

Nonequilibrium Dynamics in Complex Materials

This event is part of the Biophysics/Condensed Matter Seminar Series.

Abstract: The past decade has seen enormous advances in utilizing ultrafast optical spectroscopy to interrogate and control correlated electron materials. In particular, transition metal oxides exhibit fascinating phenomena ranging from superconductivity to metal-insulator transitions. Many of these materials exhibit colossal changes to small perturbations, which includes electromagnetic excitation. This opens up exciting possibilities such as photoinduced phase transitions with the goal to create metastable states with unique properties. Following an introduction to this research field, I will show recent examples of our work using ultrafast optical pulses to probe and control dynamics in complex transition metal oxides including manganites, vanadates, and nickelates.