Fabrication and characterization of integrated optical cavities for enhanced spin measurements

Tadeas Liska with Jesse Berezovsky Fabrication and characterization of integrated optical cavities for enhanced spin measurements Spintronics is an emerging field with numerous applications including quantum computing of which a key component is the ability to monitor the spin-state of a system.  Such monitoring can be achieved optically using spin-photon interactions...

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The epitaxial growth of topological insulator thin films using chemical vapor deposition

Jacob Marx with Xuan Gao The epitaxial growth of topological insulator thin films using chemical vapor deposition Topological insulators are a class of quantum materials with metallic surface states existing inside the bulk band gap. Current method of producing thin films of topological insulator is mainly based on molecular beam epitaxy. The...

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Liquid crystal semiconductor nanostructures

Richard Metzger with Ken SingerLiquid crystal semiconductor nanostructuresOrganic semiconductors are the subject of much study, especially for organic light emitting diodes and photovoltaics. Charge transfer and transport processes are important in this context, and optical spectroscopy on molecular aggregates can yield important information.  We will study self-assembly of discotic...

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Modified gravity on solar system scales

Dane Pittock with Claudia de RahmModified gravity on solar system scalesDuring his senior project, Dane Pittock will explore effects of Modified Gravity on Solar System scales. Infrared modifications of gravity are typically expected to modify Newton’s law and on very large distance scales, but such theories usually come hand...

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Asteroseismology using Kepler

Max Service with Paul Harding, Dept. of AstronomyAsteroseismology using KeplerRecent advances in asteroseismology allow ages of individual stars to be measured. The ages of the stars allow us to trace the formation history of the galaxy. We are interested the and the formation of the galactic stellar halo, which...

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Exploring the dualities between fluids, strings, and gravity

Jason Tabachnik with Andrew TolleyExploring the dualities between fluids, strings, and gravityRecently, high-energy physicists have discovered and developed powerful new tools known as “dualities.” Dualities are deep correspondences between naively different theories, allowing one to examine the same phenomena in two seemingly divergent lights. Essentially, they are like two...

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