Project description
Getting at what is behind the exotic vibrations that spin atoms in circles
The quantum world is made up of fundamental units, whether matter particles, packets of light or even individual particle-like vibrations in solids called phonons. While vibrations are typically more of an up-and-down, back-and-forth type of movement, it turns out that phonons that cause atoms to move in circles can also have both mechanical and electromagnetic spin. Although typically of very small magnitude, the spins may be amplified in certain materials. This could make them easier to characterise, perhaps revealing new quantum phenomena. The EU-funded PhononMoments project will apply advanced computational and theoretical methods to the study of the forced and natural circular motion of atoms in these materials for insight.
Objective
This project will study how the magnetic moments and orbital angular momenta of phonons are related to chemical structure, electronic structure, and to each other. Phonons, which are particle-like vibrational excitations in solids, are not normally considered to have an angular momentum (a mechanical spin) or a magnetic moment (an electromagnetic spin). However, it has recently been discovered that vibrations that cause atoms to move in circles can in fact have these properties, although their magnitudes are thought to be extremely small in conventional materials. We aim to study these exotic properties of phonons in flexible framework materials, which are materials which combine extreme stiffness in some directions with extreme compliance in others. This combination can give rise to very low energy vibrational modes, which results in very large motions of the atoms, and therefore we expect flexible frameworks to have much larger phonon magnetic moments and angular momenta than in conventional materials.
Our goal is to discover materials with very large phono-magnetic effects, ideally sufficiently large that they can be measured using existing experimental techniques. Large phono-magnetic effects would also allow the magnetic moment of the phonon to interact with magnetism due to the spins of electrons, leading to a heretofore undescribed physical interaction which could be useful in the study of magnetic materials. We will use computational and theoretical methods to study both materials where the circular motions of atoms require external stimulus to occur, and also chiral materials where the atoms can naturally move in circles. In this latter case, the introduction of magnetic order in the material can break the symmetry between phonons of one handedness and the other, potentially leading to emergent bulk effects such as a thermally driven angular momentum of the crystal as a whole.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences mathematics applied mathematics dynamical systems
- natural sciences physical sciences condensed matter physics solid-state physics
- natural sciences computer and information sciences computational science multiphysics
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
8092 Zuerich
Switzerland
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.