Condensed Matter


Rui-Rui Du Professor	Naomi Halas Professor (Joint Appointment)	Adilet Imambekov Assistant Professor	Junichiro Kono Professor (Joint Appointment)

Emilia Morosan Assistant Professor	Doug Natelson Associate Professor	Peter Nordlander Professor	Carl Rau Professor


Gustavo E. Scuseria Professor (Joint Appointment)	Qimiao Si Professor	G. King Walters Emeritus Professor

Condensed Matter Links

Links above have complete descriptions of ongoing research programs

Examples of CMP research at Rice:


An illustration of local quantum criticality. The traditional theory of phase transitions distinguishes the phases of matter by an order parameter -- a classical variable -- and describes criticality in terms of order-parameter fluctuations. This Landau paradigm may fail for a quantum phase transition, which occurs at absolute zero temperature when a non-thermal parameter (delta) is tuned. The local quantum criticality, developed in the context of antiferromagnetic quantum critical points of heavy fermion metals, is inherently quantum-mechanical. It involves a breakdown of the Kondo screening effect, which leads to a jump in the Fermi surface and the vanishing of multiple energy scales at the onset of magnetic ordering.		Nanoscale gaps for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy. (A) Micrograph of nanoscale Au constrictions. (B) Close-up. A nanometer-scale gap has been made between left and right electrodes, which is a focal point for plasmon enhanced electric fields when illuminated. (C) Raman image of silicon substrate, showing Au pads. (D) Raman emission from molecules on the Au electrodes, localized to the nanoscale gap. Similar structures can be used for sensing and examining the interplay between current flow and vibrational effects in single molecules.

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