PhD Candidate in Condensed Matter Physics for the Synthesis of 2D Materials - Nijmegen, Nederland - Radboud University

Beschrijving

Recently, two-dimensional (2D) materials, e.g. graphene, have gained much attention in research for their special physical properties compared to their three-dimensional counterparts. Halides or transition metal dichalcogenides in particular, but also many other material compounds, show great potential for future device applications because of their special superconducting, magnetic or transport properties. However, typically these materials are very reactive and deteriorate quickly under ambient conditions or even in the dry atmosphere of a glove box.

Your goal will be to establish a new synthesis method and subsequently investigate these materials using local probes at ultra-low temperatures, including scanning probe microscopy and magneto-transport. Using these newly developed material systems, you will investigate physical phenomena such as superconductivity, charge transport, and unconventional memory/computing. Your teaching load may be up to 10% of your working time.

Our Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) group has long-standing expertise in developing very specialised and world-class scientific instruments [1]. Furthermore, we have successfully explored the surface properties of bulk black phosphorus [2] and demonstrated its potential as a platform for orbital memory [3] and even brain-inspired computing [4]. The next natural step is to investigate materials mentioned above in their 2D limit [5].

Relevant references:

[1] Allwörden et al., RSI 89 , , Design and performance of an ultra-high vacuum spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscope operating at 30 mK and in a vector magnetic field..

[2] Kiraly et al., Nano Lett. 17 (6), , Probing Single Vacancies in Black Phosphorus at the Atomic Level.

[3] Kiraly et al., Nat. Commun. 9 , , An orbitally derived single-atom magnetic memory.

[4] Kiraly et al., Nat. Nanotechnol. 16 , , An atomic Boltzmann machine capable of self-adaption.

[5] Kamlapure et al., Nat. Commun. 13 , , Tuning lower dimensional superconductivity with hybridization at a superconducting-semiconducting interface.