Project description
Exploring non-equilibrium topological phases in trivial materials
Topological materials can be insulating in bulk but have conductive surface states owing to symmetry-protected topological order. Comprising electronic states that are protected against perturbation, this class of materials shows high promise for use in dissipationless electronics and fault-tolerant quantum computers. Topological insulators could be switched from a non-conducting state to a conducting state using light pulses. Light pulses could also help stabilise non-equilibrium topological phases in trivial materials. However, real-time monitoring of ultrafast, non-equilibrium topological phase transitions is challenging. The ERC-funded UTOPIQ project will use tailored femtosecond pulses with peculiar symmetries to induce ultrafast electronic dynamics leading to topological phase transitions in 2D materials. The non-equilibrium electronic band structure of photoexcited 2D quantum materials will be measured using time-, angle- and polarisation-resolved spectroscopy.
Objective
Topological phases of matter emerge from the interplay between broken symmetries and many-body physics and exhibit many fascinating quantum phenomena. Ultrafast switching between different topological phases using light pulses holds the promise for disruptive optoelectronic functionalities, like dissipationless and fault-tolerant logical operations. However, the lack of proper observable being simultaneously sensitive to the local (in momentum-space) topology of the band structure and compatible with time-resolved measurements prevents the real-time monitoring of ultrafast non-equilibrium topological phase transitions.
I will address this fundamental challenge by introducing innovative control and measurement methodologies using tailored light pulses in time-, angle- and polarization-resolved extreme ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy. This approach will enable to follow the ultrafast evolution of the electronic band structures local topology, in photoexcited quantum materials. This will represent a major advance in photoemission spectroscopy, by moving from band structure mapping to accessing the dynamical evolution of the Bloch wavefunction of solids.
I will use these novel time- and quantum-state-resolved dichroic observables to investigate the rich non-equilibrium physics underlying ultrafast topological phase transitions occurring on various timescales following impulsive optical excitation using shaped pump pulses: i) during the formation of hybrid light-matter (Floquet-Bloch) states, ii) upon the transient modification of electronic correlations, and iii) following the excitation of coherent phonon modes. UTOPIQ will deliver a dramatically improved understanding of the interplay between the non-equilibrium behaviour and non-trivial topology in photoexcited quantum materials, while further representing a decisive step towards the development of the field of ultrafast on demand topology.
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 pure mathematics topology
- natural sciences physical sciences atomic physics
- natural sciences physical sciences optics spectroscopy
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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)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
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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.
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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.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
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(opens in new window) ERC-2022-STG
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75794 PARIS
France
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