Oxide Nano Electronics Lab Research

The research in my lab is intended to understand and apply functional oxide electronic materials. The electrons responsible for transport in these materials are “highly correlated” and cannot be described like conventional metallic conductors as a collection of nuclei and free electrons. Instead in strongly correlated materials the interaction of the electrons with one another leads to exotic functionalities. Two of these materials currently of interest to my group are high-TC superconductors and multiferroics. The mechanisms of the electronic properties in both of these materials is not well-understood. For basic science studies use and develop techniques like confined geometry (1 dimensional lines or ultra-thin films), electron tunneling, and ion beam-induced disorder to, modify, structure and confine these materials to better understand their properties.

In parallel, another thrust of my research is to look for ways to exploit the novel functionalities of oxide electronic materials for applications. Currently we partner with industry to engineer these materials into new types of devices for aerospace and biomedical applications such as aircraft and satellite communication components, bio-medical sensors, and high performance computing. This is a multi-disciplinary process in which we combine materials science, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and physics to build prototype systems. From the thin film growth of the basic materials to the design of the mechanical and electrical system components we engineer complete systems from start to finish with the goal of transferring novel technology from a university research lab to industry.

All these studies incorporate an eye to possible device applications. (The Josephson Effect, magnetic field sensors, spin electronics and unique magnetic states).