MRI: Development of a 50-Tesla Ultrabroadband Magneto-optical Spectroscopy System

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This project develops a unique facility at Rice University that houses an ultracompact pulsed magnet combined with an arsenal of state-of-the-art instruments for materials research. A distinctive feature of this system is the combination of a strong magnetic field with ultrashort laser pulses covering a broad spectrum. This unconventional coupling of magnetism and optics can produce new scientific knowledge and exciting breakthroughs, advancing the frontier of materials physics and chemistry. With current collaborations with Japanese and French researchers, the novel facility positions Rice University as an international hub for materials researchers. The project also features a multifaceted workforce development plan run through the facility wherein graduate students receive hands-on experience in developing, fabricating, and disseminating miniature magnet models during classroom demonstrations. Workforce impact extends beyond the current project reaching an anticipated ~50 Ph.D. students over 10 years, thereby producing a new generation of rigorously educated and trained material scientists and engineers who are equipped with the technical expertise to advance fundamental and applied research well into the future.The objective of this project is the development of a 50-Tesla ultrabroadband magneto-optical spectroscopy system, a unique facility that houses an ultracompact pulsed magnet combined with an arsenal of state-of-the-art instruments for modern materials, which has the potential to impact numerous technologies, including computation, communications, and sensing, in ways never before possible. The system combines a mini-coil magnet, an ultrafast ultrabroadband laser, and photodetection systems to develop various magneto-spectroscopic capabilities that will allow scientists to conduct transformative research. The system and research conducted therein provide new insights into the states, dynamics, and behaviors of electrons in unique materials that exhibit novel properties in high magnetic fields, including the spontaneous appearance of macroscopic coherence of excitons; nonequilibrium dynamics of Dirac fermions in a quantizing magnetic field; spin dynamics of strongly-interacting, one-dimensional electrons; states in high temperature superconductors; and magnon-polaritons. Team members are world leaders in an array of research areas: magneto-optical and ultrafast optical studies of low-dimensional systems, terahertz spectroscopy of nanomaterials, and theoretical and experimental condensed matter physics. The system is operated and maintained for Rice University researchers and external collaborators from around the world, making Rice a hub for an international network of materials researchers.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.