NSF CAREER: Enhancing the Optical Properties of Topological Dirac and Weyl Semimetals

材料科学的进步有助于现代世界每一次工业革命的成功，包括当前的量子革命。为了实现植根于量子力学基础的技术优势，美国建立了国家量子计划，其中包括量子材料和形成“量子智能”劳动力。在这个项目中，主要研究者旨在通过一个综合的研究和教育计划来解决这两个要求，该计划围绕增强材料的物理特性对变形具有鲁棒性。因此，该项目解决了材料实验研究的具体需求，以及光控电子和光子器件中的技术和应用。 通过在大电场和磁场的影响下进行测量，首席研究员和他的团队将评估性能，以提高可靠性，速度和耐用性，从而实现量子通信，计算和传感。此外，综合教育计划广泛影响科学界，并整合研究，以增加对高磁场科学的参与，特别是来自历史上黑人学院和大学（HBCU）物理和材料科学界。 该研究计划将非线性光学和等离子体激元学结合起来，探索重要的科学挑战，例如拓扑半金属的掺杂、高磁场对狄拉克和外尔半金属的影响，以及狄拉克和外尔半金属作为自然存在的负折射率材料在技术上的存在重要的红外区域。 红外到太赫兹范围内的非线性光学光谱技术将用于研究拓扑半金属的光学特性如何通过以下方式增强：降低维度（体与单层）;图案化成超表面或混合超材料;以及施加外部场（DC，光学/THz或磁场）。首席研究员还将通过一个综合的研究和教育计划广泛影响科学界，该计划包括：分布，低成本，长时间脉冲高磁场（高达10吨）的设备，以HBCU物理社区增加参与高磁场科学;整合该设备到物理课程在霍华德和4个合作伙伴HBCU;通过在霍华德和全国黑人物理学会会议上举办的研讨会，提高了黑人物理学本科生的物理学身份。 该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Advances in materials science are instrumental to the success of each industrial revolution of the modern world, including the current quantum revolution. To achieve the technological advantages rooted in the basis of quantum mechanics, the United States established the National Quantum Initiative which included quantum materials and the formation of a “quantum-smart” workforce. In this project, the Principal Investigator aims to address both requirements through an integrated research and education plan centered around enhancing materials whose physical properties are robust against deformation. Therefore, the project addresses the specific need for experimental studies of materials with technologies and applications in light controlled electronic and photonics devices. Through measurements under the influence of large electric and magnetic fields, the Principal Investigator and his team will assess the performance for increased reliability, speed and durability leading to quantum-enabled communications, computing, and sensing. Furthermore, the comprehensive education plan broadly impacts the scientific community and integrates the research to increase participation in high magnetic field science, especially from the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) physics and materials science communities. The research plan merges nonlinear optics and plasmonics to explore important scientific challenges such as doping of topological semimetals, the influence of high magnetic fields on Dirac and Weyl semimetals and the existence of Dirac and Weyl semimetals as naturally occurring negative index materials in the technologically important infrared regime. Nonlinear optical spectroscopy techniques in the infrared to terahertz range will be used to study how the optical properties of topological semimetals are enhanced by: reducing dimensionality (bulk vs. monolayer); patterning into metasurfaces or hybrid metamaterials; and applying external fields (DC, optical/THz or magnetic field). The Principal Investigator will also broadly impact the scientific community through an integrated research and education plan that: distributes, low-cost, long duration pulsed high magnetic field (up to 10 T) apparatus to the HBCU Physics Community for increased participation in High Magnetic Field science; integrates the apparatus into the physics curricula at Howard and 4 partner HBCUs; and improves the physics identity of Black undergraduate Physics students through workshops hosted at Howard and the National Society of Black Physics Meeting. Further outreach to the scientific community includes the creation of a YouTube and Slack channels specific to development of low-cost pulsed magnetic field apparatus.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.