Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Group

Research in quantum materials will be carried out with an integrated program that combines the development of highly controlled growth of bulk crystals and thin films, with state-of-the-art spectroscopic measurements. As a world-leading group in materials development, we are able to study samples of exceptionally high purity, revealing the intrinsic electronic properties of materials and provide a basis for manipulating them with controlled impurity substitutions. The main materials being developed through high purity crystal growth are the high temperature superconductors based on copper oxides, and the newest family of high temperature superconductors built on layered iron arsenides. These high purity crystals facilitate the research of numerous Canadian scientists, as well as our own work on electronic properties. Our own measurements focus on two different spectroscopic techniques. The first of these is microwave measurements which are used to measure the density of superconducting electrons, as well as the low energy excitations out of the superconducting ground state. Our most recent advance is the addition of scanning tunneling spectroscopy to this suite of experimental techniques. The new scanning probe facility is unique in Canada, offering an ultra-low vibration environment that allows us to study the electronic properties on the surface of a material, at low temperatures, in high magnetic field, and with atomic resolution.