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Theory of Condensed Matter
Theoretical Condensed Matter physics is about building models of physical processes, often driven by experimental data, generalising the solutions of those models to make experimental predictions, and transferring the concepts gained into other areas of research. Theory plays an important role in understanding known phenomena and in predicting new ones.
With over seventy members, the TCM Group is one of the largest research Groups in the Cavendish Laboratory, and the largest university Condensed Matter Theory group in the country. Able to trace its history back for over sixty years, it has been home to many leading theoreticians.
Starting at the first principles microscopic level - with the Schrödinger equation - many properties of materials can now be calculated with a high degree of accuracy. We work on refining and developing new calculational tools and applying them to problems in physics, chemistry, materials science and biology.
Solids often show unusual collective behaviour resulting from cooperative quantum or classical phenomena. For this type of physics a more model-based approach is appropriate, and we are using such methods to attack problems in magnetism, superconductivity, nonlinear optics, mesoscopic systems, polymers, and colloids.
Collective behaviour comes even more to the fore in systems on a larger scale. As examples, we work on self-organising structures in "soft" condensed matter systems, non-linear dynamics of interacting systems, the observer in quantum mechanics, and models of biophysical processes, from the molecular scale up to neural systems.
TCM congratuates Nicholas Worth for passing his PhD viva. Well done!
TCM congratuates Gareth Conduit for winning the Society of Chemical Industry presentation award.
News archive(Click the above tab to reload the Seminars list.)
More seminars- Stopping power beyond the adiabatic approximation Scientific Reports 7 2618 (2017)
- Design of a nickel-base superalloy using a neural network Mater. Des. 131 358 - 365 (2017)
- Emergence and universality in the regulation of stem cell fate Current Opinion in Systems Biology 5 57 - 62 (2017)
- A Unifying Theory of Branching Morphogenesis Cell 171 242 - 255 (2017)
- Stochastic Kuramoto oscillators with discrete phase states Phys. Rev. E 96 032201 (2017)
- Effective-range dependence of two-dimensional Fermi gases Phys. Rev. A 96 023619 (2017)
- Multipotent Basal Stem Cells, Maintained in Localized Proximal Niches, Support Directed Long-Ranging Epithelial Flows in Human Prostates. Cell Rep. 20 1609 - 1622 (2017)
- Particle-Hole Symmetry in the Fermion-Chern-Simons and Dirac Descriptions of a Half-Filled Landau Level Phys. Rev. X 7 031029 (2017)
- Computationally-guided optimization of small-molecule inhibitors of the Aurora A kinase-TPX2 protein-protein interaction. Chemical Communications (2017)
- Using forces to accelerate first-principles anharmonic vibrational calculations Physical Review Materials 1 023801 (2017)
- Structural properties of genotype-phenotype maps. J. Roy. Soc. Interface 14 20170275 (2017)
- Disorder-Free Localization. Phys. Rev. Lett. 118 266601 (2017)
- Quantum Synchronization Blockade: Energy Quantization Hinders Synchronization of Identical Oscillators Phys. Rev. Lett. 118 243602 (2017)
- Experimental and Theoretical Evaluation of the Stability of True MOF Polymorphs Explains Their Mechanochemical Interconversions. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 139 7952 - 7957 (2017)
- Neutron scattering in the proximate quantum spin liquid alpha-RuCl3 Science 356 1055 - 1058 (2017)
- Neutron scattering in the proximate quantum spin liquid α-RuCl3. Science 356 1055 - 1059 (2017)
- Majorana Landau-level Raman spectroscopy Phys. Rev. B 95 184429 (2017)
- Shape and Energy Consistent Pseudopotentials for Correlated Electron systems The Journal of Chemical Physics 146 204107 (2017)
- Synchronization of an optomechanical system to an external drive Phys. Rev. A 95 053858 (2017)
- On the accuracy of one- and two-particle solvation entropies. J Chem Phys 146 194111 (2017)
Theoretical Condensed Matter physics is about building models of physical processes, often driven by experimental data, generalising the solutions of those models to make experimental predictions, and transferring the concepts gained into other areas of research. Theory plays an important role in understanding known phenomena and in predicting new ones.
With over seventy members, the TCM Group is one of the largest research Groups in the Cavendish Laboratory, and the largest university Condensed Matter Theory group in the country. Able to trace its history back for over sixty years, it has been home to many leading theoreticians.
Starting at the first principles microscopic level - with the Schrödinger equation - many properties of materials can now be calculated with a high degree of accuracy. We work on refining and developing new calculational tools and applying them to problems in physics, chemistry, materials science and biology.
Solids often show unusual collective behaviour resulting from cooperative quantum or classical phenomena. For this type of physics a more model-based approach is appropriate, and we are using such methods to attack problems in magnetism, superconductivity, nonlinear optics, mesoscopic systems, polymers, and colloids.
Collective behaviour comes even more to the fore in systems on a larger scale. As examples, we work on self-organising structures in "soft" condensed matter systems, non-linear dynamics of interacting systems, the observer in quantum mechanics, and models of biophysical processes, from the molecular scale up to neural systems.
News
TCM congratuates Nicholas Worth for passing his PhD viva. Well done!
TCM congratuates Gareth Conduit for winning the Society of Chemical Industry presentation award.
Recent Publications
- Stopping power beyond the adiabatic approximation Scientific Reports 7 2618 (2017)
- Design of a nickel-base superalloy using a neural network Mater. Des. 131 358 - 365 (2017)
- Emergence and universality in the regulation of stem cell fate Current Opinion in Systems Biology 5 57 - 62 (2017)
- A Unifying Theory of Branching Morphogenesis Cell 171 242 - 255 (2017)
- Stochastic Kuramoto oscillators with discrete phase states Phys. Rev. E 96 032201 (2017)
- Effective-range dependence of two-dimensional Fermi gases Phys. Rev. A 96 023619 (2017)
- Multipotent Basal Stem Cells, Maintained in Localized Proximal Niches, Support Directed Long-Ranging Epithelial Flows in Human Prostates. Cell Rep. 20 1609 - 1622 (2017)
- Particle-Hole Symmetry in the Fermion-Chern-Simons and Dirac Descriptions of a Half-Filled Landau Level Phys. Rev. X 7 031029 (2017)
- Computationally-guided optimization of small-molecule inhibitors of the Aurora A kinase-TPX2 protein-protein interaction. Chemical Communications (2017)
- Using forces to accelerate first-principles anharmonic vibrational calculations Physical Review Materials 1 023801 (2017)
- Structural properties of genotype-phenotype maps. J. Roy. Soc. Interface 14 20170275 (2017)
- Disorder-Free Localization. Phys. Rev. Lett. 118 266601 (2017)
- Quantum Synchronization Blockade: Energy Quantization Hinders Synchronization of Identical Oscillators Phys. Rev. Lett. 118 243602 (2017)
- Experimental and Theoretical Evaluation of the Stability of True MOF Polymorphs Explains Their Mechanochemical Interconversions. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 139 7952 - 7957 (2017)
- Neutron scattering in the proximate quantum spin liquid alpha-RuCl3 Science 356 1055 - 1058 (2017)
- Neutron scattering in the proximate quantum spin liquid α-RuCl3. Science 356 1055 - 1059 (2017)
- Majorana Landau-level Raman spectroscopy Phys. Rev. B 95 184429 (2017)
- Shape and Energy Consistent Pseudopotentials for Correlated Electron systems The Journal of Chemical Physics 146 204107 (2017)
- Synchronization of an optomechanical system to an external drive Phys. Rev. A 95 053858 (2017)
- On the accuracy of one- and two-particle solvation entropies. J Chem Phys 146 194111 (2017)