| Posted: February 25, 2008 |
Novel materials research nets physicist NSF CAREER award |
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(Nanowerk News) A University of Arkansas physics professor will create and explore novel interface-controlled materials at the nanoscale to explore their physical properties, many of which are not attainable in bulk materials. His research in this area earned him a $410,735 CAREER award from the National Science Foundation to continue the research, which was cited by Science magazine as one of the top 10 breakthroughs of 2007.
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Jak Chakhalian, assistant professor of physics in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, and colleagues found a novel way to "look" at atomic orbitals and found that they change substantially at the interface between a ferromagnet and a high-temperature superconductor. They reported their findings in the journal Science.
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This finding opens up a new way of designing nanoscale superconducting materials and fundamentally changes scientific convention, which suggests that only electron spin and atomic charge - not atomic orbitals - influence the properties of superconducting nanostructures. It also has implications for interfaces between other complex oxide materials.
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"When you merge these two materials, the atomic orbitals at the interface become important. They start contributing to the electronic properties of the material," Chakhalian said. "This opens up a remarkable new way of designing materials. In the future, we should be able to design quantum materials with engineered physical properties. This result may open a path to the second revolution in electronics based on oxide nanostructures."
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In addition to providing funding for the basic research, this award also will allow Chakhalian to develop a new graduate-level course in experimental methods for nanoscience and a new summer outreach program - a "nano-camp" that will be specifically developed for underrepresented students and minorities across Arkansas.
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The National Science Foundation awards CAREER grants to select researchers early in their professional lives to enhance their research and teaching missions.
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