Postgraduate Research in TCM

## Supervisors for 2024 entry

[Emilio Artacho](#emilio), 
				[Benjamin Béri](#benjamin), 
				[Claudio Castelnovo](#claudio), 
				[Nigel Cooper](#nigel), 
				[Austen Lamacraft](#austen),
				[Bo Peng](#bo),
				[Christoph Schran](#christoph),
				[Robert-Jan Slager](#robert-jan),
				[Anton Souslov](#anton),
				...

- Application info: [www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/vacancies/postgrad.html](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/vacancies/postgrad.html)

- This is an incomplete list of available projects... 
				
				<figcaption align="center">
					(»ESC« or »O« for overview mode)
				</figcaption>
					
				
				---
				
						
				##  [Emilio Artacho](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/ea245)

Research within computational and theoretical condensed matter physics, especially (but not exclusively) developing and using first-principles simulation methods. Recent work includes:

- Nano-confined water in 2D, based on molecular dynamics simulations, both from first principles and empirical. For the former we use the SIESTA linear-scaling density-functional-theory (DFT) method, which we develop and maintain in collaboration with other groups.

- Non-adiabatic processes in forced electronic systems, mostly as affected by a nucleus shooting through them, as happens in radiation-damage processes. We use real-time time-dependent DFT. We recently formulated a Floquet theory for nuclear projectiles shooting through periodic solids.

<figure align="center"> 
					<img src="static/proton-wake-in-diamond.png" alt="wake" width="350" class="center"/>
					<figcaption>
						Proton wake in diamond
					</figcaption>
				</figure>

- Offering projects in:

- Electronic systems strongly out of equilibrium, relating to first principles

- Graphene nanostructures

- First-principles techniques and methods

- Open to other lines within the described context.

---

## [Benjamin Béri](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/bfb26/)

Theory of quantum many-body systems and their quantum computing applications. Directions PhD projects may involve include:
					
				- topologically ordered many-qubit and electronic systems
				- quantum dynamics in isolated and in open systems
				- quantum error correction
				
				These topics can well be in combination: for example, quantum error correction involves open, often topologically ordered, systems and its theory can range from statistical mechanics to novel aspects of quantum dynamics.

---

## [Claudio Castelnovo](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/cc726/)

- Emergent dynamical phenomena in topological magnetic materials, from microscopic modelling to effective theories

- Interplay between topological band structures and quantum spin liquids

- Anomalous noise and transport properties in systems with low-dimensional excitations

---

## [Nigel Cooper](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/nrc25/)

Quantum many-body physics of cold atomic gases and novel electronic materials

- Strongly interacting light-matter systems
				- Topology and symmetry in open quantum systems
				- Collective dynamics in correlated insulators

---
				
				## [Austen Lamacraft](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/al200/)

- My background is in quantum many-body physics, but I’m also working at the interface of physics and machine learning

- I'm offering projects on (examples below)
					1. Quantum dynamics from [unitary circuits](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_circuit)
					2. Machine learning in quantum and statistical physics

- I'm also part of the [Accelerate Programme for Scientific Discovery](https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/new-programme-to-accelerate-ai-research-capability-at-cambridge)
				
				--

### [Solving Schrödinger Bridges via Max Likelihood](https://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/23/9/1134)

- A __Schrödinger bridge__ is the most likely stochastic evolution between
				two probability distributions given a prior stochastic evolution

<figure align="center">
					<img src="static/sb1.png" alt="drawing" width="350" class="center"/>
					<img src="static/sb2.png" alt="drawing" width="450" class="center"/>	
					<figcaption>
						Learned Schrödinger Bridge trajectories in a double well experiment.
					</figcaption>
				</figure>

--
				
				### Quantum Circuits

<figure align="center">
					<img src="static/circuit.png" alt="drawing" width="350" class="center"/>			
					<figcaption>
						A "brickwork" quantum circuit.
					</figcaption>
				</figure>

- A model for quantum dynamics inspired by quantum computation
				- How fast can influences propagate in these systems? See [Maximum velocity quantum circuits](https://journals.aps.org/prresearch/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.2.033032)

---

## [Bo Peng](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/bp432/)

- My research background is in computational condensed matter physics, and I am offering projects using density functional theory or many-body perturbation theory to predict materials properties.

- The prospective PhD students will work on applications of first principles calculations to emergent new physics in solid state materials, including but not limited to:
				
				--

- Topological properties in various quasiparticles

<figure align="center">
					<img src="static/topological-quasiparticles.png" alt="drawing" width="450" class="center"/>	
					<figcaption>
						Non-Abelian braiding of phonons in monolayer silicate [Bo Peng, Adrien Bouhon, Bartomeu Monserrat & Robert-Jan Slager. <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-28046-9" target="_blank">Nature Communications 13, 423 (2022)</a>. ESI Top 0.1% Hot Paper]
					</figcaption>
				</figure>
				
				
				--

- Photo-induced phase transitions

<figure align="center">
					<img src="static/photons.png" alt="drawing" width="400" class="center"/>	
					<figcaption>
						Tunable photostriction of halide perovskites through energy dependent photoexcitation [B Peng, et al. <a href="https://journals.aps.org/prmaterials/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.6.L082401" target="_blank">Physical Review Materials 6, L082401 (2022)</a>. Editors' Suggestion]
					</figcaption>
				</figure>

--
				
				- Carbon nanomaterials
				
				<figure align="center">
					<img src="static/C60.png" alt="drawing" width="450" class="center"/>	
					<figcaption>
						Photocatalysis of monolayer fullerene networks [Bo Peng. <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/jacs.2c08054" target="_blank">Journal of the American Chemical Society 144, 19921 (2022)</a>.]
					</figcaption>
				</figure>
				
								
				
				---

## [Christoph Schran](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/cs2121/)

Our group studies materials properties using atomistic simulations based on first-principles. Recent focus is on machine learning potentials for complex systems, involving solid-liquid interfaces. 
				
				Examples include phase behaviour of water at interfaces, confinement in nanotubes and nanochannels, mechanistic details of ion dissolution, or interplay of CO2 and water.
				
				- We are part of the <a href="https://ljc.group.cam.ac.uk/">Lennard-Jones Centre</a> and also accept applications via the CDT in Computational Methods for Materials Science.
				
				- See the next slides for two potential project directions.

### Aqueous Phase Behaviour on Catalytic Platforms
				
				- PhD project will focus on solvation behaviour of promising materials such as hexagonal boron nitride, MoS2, TiO2, MXenes, and single-atom catalysts on host matrices.
				
				- Phase behaviour of water in contact with materials is highly relevant for applications such as CO2 reduction and water splitting.
				
				<div id="mydiv">
				
				- For related work from our group, see this Nature <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05036-x">publication</a>.
				
				</div>
				
				<div id="mydiv">
					<img src="static/CS_image1.jpg" alt="structure" width="350" class="center"/>
                                </div>
				
				--

### Reactions at Solid-Liquid Interfaces through Machine Learning
				<div id="mydiv">
				
				- Accurate descriptions of surface interactions are key to understand reactions at solid-liquid interfaces.</li>
				
				- PhD project will focus on methodological development using ML to construct efficient representations of reactive potential energy surfaces.
				</div>
				
				<div id="mydiv">
				<img src="static/CS_image2.jpg" alt="trajectory", align="top", width="350" class="center" style="display:block;"/>
                                </div>
				
				- For related work from our group, see this PNAS <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2110077118">publication</a>.
				
				
				
				
				---
				
				
				## [Robert-Jan Slager](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/rjs269/)

- __Multi-gap topology__ in and out of equilibrium. We found that by braiding band nodes in certain setups non-Abelian charges can be defined and converted to render new kinds of topological phases.
				- __Ferroelectric topology__ in multi-layer twisted systems.
				- __Quantum geometry__. We are working on defining some new framework to define more general quantum geometries and how to probe them.
				- __Floquet phases__. Periodic phases and out-of-equilibrium phenomena.
				- __Magnetism__. We have found some new correspondences between topology and certain spin structures in specific cases and are working to extend this.
				- Superfluidity and topology in __multi-layers__ of 2D systems.
				
				
				
				
				---
				
				##  [Anton Souslov](https://www.tcm.phy.cam.ac.uk/profiles/as3546)

We are interested in modelling the mechanics of soft materials and designing new states of matter. Our interests include:
				
				- elasticity and patterns in active solids, 
				- viscoelastic aerosols, 
				- topological states in mechanics and fiber optics.

In addition to modelling naturally occurring soft matter, we design new structures called mechanical metamaterials using patterns on scales from nanometers to the macroscopic.

We develop theories of active and shape-changing materials by including motors side-by-side with elastic elements. These materials display exotic patterns and elasticity. Our goals are to design new active mechanical metamaterials and to understand the mechanics of naturally occurring biological matter.

<figure align="center"> 
					<img src="static/AS_Figure1.png" alt="capillarity-sphere" width="350" class="center"/>
					<figcaption>
					<a href = "https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abk3079"> Active elastocapillarity in a sphere (Binysh et al., Science Advances, 2022) </a>
					</figcaption>
				</figure>

Topology provides a rich and useful design principle for novel materials. Topological states can offer robustness to many types of signals, from electronics and acoustic to photonics. In collaboration with experimentalists, we design novel types of optical fibre where light is guided by topological states.
				
				<figure align="center"> 
					<img src="static/AS_Figure2.png" alt="capillarity-sphere" width="350" class="center"/>
					<figcaption>
					<a href = "https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.add3522">Topological photonic crystal fibre (Roberts et al., Science Advances, 2022) </a>
					</figcaption>
				</figure>