Materials discovery and synthesis form the foundation of emerging quantum and energy technologies.  Quantum materials exhibit functional behaviors such as superconductivity, magnetism, multiferroicity or non-linear optical properties that arise from atomic-scale interactions between charge, spin, and lattice.  By carefully sculpting the crystalline lattice at the atomic-scale, we can understand, stabilize, and control these macroscopic quantum phases.

Our group will design, synthesize, and interrogate new quantum materials, starting with transition metal oxides, toward both the development of materials for quantum technologies and the discovery of new physics.  We will push the boundaries of epitaxial thin film synthesis techniques, which provide exquisite atomic-scale control over chemical composition, hetero-interfaces, and strain, in order to stabilize bulk-inspired materials in the thin film form for the first time.  We will pair thin film deposition with solid-state and soft chemistry, which further modulate the chemical bonding and hybridization environments that give rise to electronic band structures or magnetic geometries.  Finally, we will employ low-temperature electronic transport and spectroscopic probes to correlate structure, bonding, and defects with emergent quantum properties.

Our work thrives under close collaboration with experts in theory, advanced characterization, and complementary synthesis techniques.  We are supported both by the rich experimental resources at the University of Michigan and by shared national lab and user facilities across the world.  Our research interfaces materials science, physics, chemistry, and engineering, and welcomes students and postdoctoral scholars with varied scientific interests -- motivated by materials discovery, synthesis, and measurement -- to join us starting January 2027.