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Switching on a superfluid

Exotic phase transitions unlock pathways to future, superfluid-based technologies. We can learn a lot by studying microscopic and macroscopic changes in a material as it crosses from one phase to another, for example from ice to water to steam. But while these phase transitions are well understood in the case of water, much less is known about the dynamics when …

Electrons on the edge: the story of an intrinsic magnetic topological insulator

An intrinsic magnetic topological insulator MnBi2Te4 has been discovered with a large band gap, making it a promising material platform for fabricating ultra-low-energy electronics and observing exotic topological phenomena. Hosting both magnetism and topology, ultra-thin (only several nanometers in thickness) MnBi2Te4 was found to have a large band-gap in a Quantum Anomalous Hall (QAH) insulating state, where the material is …

Star attraction: magnetism generated in 2D organic material by star-like arrangement of molecules

2D kagome materials are a platform for tuneable electron-electron interactions ‘Star-like’ atomic-scale kagome geometry ‘switches on’ magnetism in a 2D organic material A 2D nanomaterial consisting of organic molecules linked to metal atoms in a specific atomic-scale geometry shows non-trivial electronic and magnetic properties due to strong interactions between its electrons. A new study, published today, shows the emergence of …

Home-grown semiconductors for faster, smaller electronics

‘Growing’ electronic components directly onto a semiconductor block avoids messy, noisy oxidation scattering that slows and impedes electronic operation. A UNSW study out this month shows that the resulting high-mobility components are ideal candidates for high-frequency, ultra-small electronic devices, quantum dots, and for qubit applications in quantum computing. Smaller means faster, but also noisier Making computers faster requires ever-smaller transistors, …

¡Felicidades! Fellowship success for Dr Iolanda Di Bernardo

Congratulations to FLEET Research Fellow Dr Iolanda Di Bernardo (Monash), who has received the highly prized Juan de la Cierva fellowship to fund research in Spain, starting in Spring 2022. The Juan de la Cierva fellowship is highly competitive, with a success rate between 10 and 15%, and is similar to the Australian DECRA fellowship. The grants encourage the recruitment …

New DECRA fellowships at FLEET

Three FLEET Research Fellows are amongst those receiving DECRA Fellowships in ARC announcements this week. Congratulations to: Dr Matt Reeves (UQ) Calming the Superfluid Storm: Taming Turbulence in Superfluid Devices Dr Eli Estrecho (ANU) Mixing light and matter with complex gauge fields Dr Qingdong Ou (Monash) Engineering twisted 2D materials for mid-infrared detectors. Dr Matt Reeves (UQ) Calming the Superfluid …

Congratulations Dr Zhi Li, a superconducting Future Fellow

Congratulations to FLEET AI Dr Zhi Li (UOW) who received an ARC Future Fellowship in this month’s announcement. The new ARC Fellowship will support Dr Li’s study of iron-based high-temperature topological superconductors, based at the Institute of Superconducting and Electronic Materials (ISEM) at the University of Wollongong. The topological non-trivial nature and zero resistance of topological superconductors make them very …

Where are they now? Life Post-FLEET with Paul Atkin

Talk to as many people as possible about your future career Stay open to new career directions Hi, I’m Paul Atkin. If we didn’t meet during my time as a FLEET scientist, we may have met more recently in my new life as a sales guy. If we haven’t met yet, I sincerely apologise and strongly suggest we meet for …

A Smooth Conduit for Electron Fluids

—first published APS Physics Electrons flow like a viscous fluid through a 2D channel with perfectly smooth sidewalls, offering a new platform to test solid-state and fluid dynamics theories. Electrons can, under certain conditions, flow like a fluid that’s thicker than honey. Now researchers have managed to observe this viscous fluid behavior in a way that allows unambiguous measurements and …

Mixing a cocktail of topology and magnetism for future electronics

Monash review: joining topological insulators with magnetic materials for energy-efficient electronics A new Monash review throws the spotlight on recent research in heterostructures of topological insulators and magnetic materials. In such heterostructures, the interesting interplay of magnetism and topology can give rise to new phenomena such as quantum anomalous Hall insulators, axion insulators and skyrmions. All of these are promising …

New 2D research hub features FLEET talent

A new ARC Research Hub highlighting the role of novel and 2D materials in emerging technologies in fields such as energy storage, purification and printed electronics features FLEET talent amongst its team. The ARC Research Hub for Advanced Manufacturing with 2D Materials (AM2D) will be led by Prof Mainak Majumder (Monash Department of Mechanical Engineering). Two FLEET Chief Investigators are amongst …

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Video explainers for 3MT

Tackling the next climate crisis with polariton superfluids, chocolate bars, ultra-fast laser pulses and chaotic gardening… FLEET’s Rishabh Mishra (Swinburne), Mitko Oldfield and Alex Nguyen (both at Monash University) have recently recorded explanations of their PhD research, submitted for the 2021 national Three Minute Thesis competition. Mitko Oldfield (School of Physics and Astronomy) explains his studies of polariton superfluids, with …

Reviewing pressure effects on iron-based high-temperature superconductors

Fe-based superconductors reviewed The discovery of iron-based superconductors with a relatively high transition temperature Tc in 2008 opened a new chapter in the development of high-temperature superconductivity. The following decade saw a ‘research boom’ in superconductivity, with remarkable achievements in the theory, experiments and applications of iron-based superconductors, and in our understanding of the fundamental mechanism of superconductivity. A UOW …

Identifying a topological fingerprint

Generating a topological anomalous Hall effect in a non-magnetic conductor anomalous planar Hall effect (APHE) the ‘smoking gun’ for the topological magnetic monopole in momentum space A FLEET theoretical study out this week has found a ‘smoking gun’ in the long search for the topological magnetic monopole referred to as the Berry curvature. This discovery is a breakthrough in the …

Congratulations Jemima and Tommy

Congratulations to Jemima Goodhew (UQ) – the newest Women in FLEET Honours scholar – and Tommy Bartolo (RMIT), who has received a FLEET writeup scholarship. Jemima Goodhew has been working with FLEET CI Prof Matt Davis at UQ on computationally modelling a 2D superfluid Helmholtz resonator, driven by a chemical potential difference. She is particularly interested in the transition to and …