A new way to engineer 1D surface states through kinetic stabilization. Never heard of this? – Read our paper at http://goo.gl/d9VPBr.
peterwahl
Highlight: Strain-stabilization of a new smectic order
Our recent paper on the Discovery of a strain-stabilized smectic electronic order in LiFeAs is an Editors’ highlight in Nature Communications. Our work combines atomic-scale imaging by low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy with uniaxial strain. Straining the iron-based superconductor LiFeAs reveals the emergence of a new modulated phase, representative of a smectic electronic order. Tunneling spectra of the superconducting gap in this phase show a substantially modified superconducting order parameter.
Our results highlight the importance of electron-lattice coupling in the iron-based superconductor LiFeAs.
Read more in our article in Nature Communications.
PhD positions available
The 2019 recruitment round for PhD positions has started!
PhD positions are available through a number of routes, including through the School of Physics and Astronomy and the International Max Planck Research School.
Our group works on development of cutting edge instrumentation for atomic scale studies of electronic structure, complex magnetic orders and unconventional superconductivity. The experiments are undertaken in ultra-low vibration labs.
Learn more about our research
We have recently launched a series of videos which explain our research. If you would like to learn more, please take a look at our YouTube channel. One of the videos is specifically about Scanning Tunneling Microscopy.
Designer Quantum Materials on BBC
Our new center of designer quantum materials is featured on BBC today, see "Building the future one atom at a time" and in radio on “Good Morning Scotland”.
If you want to learn more about our research, you may want to take a look at our YouTube channel.
Opening of new Center for Designer Quantum Materials
On Thursday, 8th of December, the Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, Shirley-Anne Somerville, and the Principal of the University of St Andrews, Professor Sally Mapstone, opened a new center for Designer Quantum Materials. At the core of this facility is a reactive-oxide molecular beam epitaxy system, funded by the Engineering and Physics Sciences Research Council (EPSRC, EP/M023958/1).
Dr Peter Wahl with Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science Shirley-Anne Somerville Principal Prof Sally Mapstone Dr Philip King and head of School Prof Graham Turnbull
The Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science Shirley-Anne Somerville today (8 December 2016) officially opened a state-of-the-art centre for Designer Quantum Materials at the University of St Andrews. The centre, the first of its kind in the UK, is aimed at the creation of new materials which do not exist in nature. Almost like building LEGO structures with single atom building blocks, the Designer Quantum Materials lab allows the composition of a material to be changed between each layer, effectively making entirely new “supermaterials” – combinations and structures which would be impossible to create by any other means. At the heart of the facility is a molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) system which can custom engineer materials which can be used in a host of applications from super-efficient energy distribution to high performance computing and sensing.
Press coverage:
- BBC
- The Scotsman
- The Courier
- The National
- coverage in STV (starting from 15min16sec, log-in required)
- Press release by the University
- News item School of Physics and Astronomy
Condensed Matter Retreat at the Burn
Just coming back from our condensed matter retreat at the Burn, where we spend three days filled with talks and discussions. 
DAAD RISE programme
We are participating in the DAAD RISE programme which offers undergraduate students from Germany an opportunity to go abroad to work on a small research project. Have a look at the web pages of DAAD for more information (in german).
Installation of new MBE system
DCA have installed a dual-chamber MBE system for the growth of designer oxide heterostructures at the School of Physics and Astronomy of the University of St Andrews. See below for a video of the assembly.
The MBE system will be coupled to existing state-of-the-art spectroscopic probes including low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy and angle-resolved photoemission. This EPSRC-funded strategic equipment (EP/M023958/1) will operate as a shared facility, which we aim to establish as a leading centre for the supply of custom oxide thin films within the UK.
Ana Maldonado at Lindau Meeting
Ana Maldonado, former TOPNES PDRA at the University of St Andrews, attended the Lindau Meeting of Nobel Laureates. The Nobel Laureate Meeting is an opportunity for early career researchers to meet excellent scientists from Nobel Laureates to undergraduate students. To learn more about Ana and her visit of the Lindau Meeting, see the links below.
Panel discussion on how immigration shapes the scientific world
TV interview (in spanish):