HMC Physics Colloquium
Tuesdays at 16:30 in Shanahan Center for Teaching and Learning, Room B460
Alex Frañó
University of California at San Diego
April 23, 2019
We are in exciting times for synchrotron science and condensed matter physics. Modern x-ray experiments offer a powerful tool to address fundamental questions about materials. In this colloquium, I will illustrate some intriguing cases involving materials in which electronic correlations yield intertwined, ordered patterns of the spin, charge and orbital character of the wave functions. I will discuss x-ray scattering methods which are key to investigate the interplay of such “quantum periodicities”, which turn out to be very important in governing the macroscopic physics. I will overview the recent discovery of charge ordering as a potentially crucial ingredient in high temperature superconductivity. Furthermore, exploiting the high cross-section and element specificity of resonant scattering, magnetism solely at interfaces between oxide layers can now be detected. In addition, applied magnetic fields can expose momentum-resolved coexistence of various magnetic phases in frustrated Kitaev systems. Finally, I will discuss far-reaching changes that are occurring in synchrotron facilities which will shape our research field throughout the next decades.