From Structure to Function in Quantum Materials

Abstract: 

Over many decades, the branch of science that deals with the properties of crystalline materials has gone by many names. These include solid state chemistry and condensed matter physics, but most recently this field has adopted the more evocative name of "quantum materials". In this talk, I will explain how quantum effects shape the properties of materials and, in some cases, give rise to functionalities that show great promise for many applications areas. I will describe my group's approach to the exploration of new quantum materials, and showcase results on our recent discovery of a metal with a remarkable intolerance towards forming defects as it crystallizes.  

Bio: 

Alannah Hallas is an Associate Professor of Physics at UBC, a Principal Investigator at the Quantum Matter Institute, and the Co-Director of CIFAR’s Quantum Materials Program. She completed her PhD in 2017 at McMaster University followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Rice University. Alannah holds a Sloan Research Fellowship and she was awarded the IUPAP Early Career Scientist Prize in the field of Magnetism in 2023. Alannah’s research focuses on the discovery and crystal growth of new quantum materials and their study using a range of neutron, x-ray, and muon techniques.

Learn More:

• About Alannah: Alannah Hallas - Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute
• About solid state chemistry from MIT Open Couresware and condensed matter physics from Britannia AI