Harold Y. Hwang , Department of Applied Physics, Stanford University
Unconventional superconductivity in proximity to various strongly correlated electronic phases has been a recurring theme in materials as diverse as heavy fermion compounds, cuprates, pnictides, and twisted bilayer graphene. Here we will introduce a new and growing family of layered nickelate superconductors. The initial discovery of superconductivity in infinite-layer nickelates was motivated by looking for an electronic analog of the cuprates. Notable aspects are a doping-dependent superconducting dome, strong magnetic fluctuations, and a landscape of unusual normal state properties from which superconductivity emerges. The subsequent discovery of superconductivity in bulk La 3 Ni 2 O 7 under high pressure is quite intriguing, in that the d-electron configuration is a priori quite different. Recently, we have used epitaxial strain in (La,Pr) 3 Ni 2 O 7 thin films to stabilize superconductivity at ambient pressure, which is promising to extend their experimental study and development.
Bio: Harold Y. Hwang is Professor of Applied Physics (Stanford University) and Photon Science (SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory), Senior Fellow of the Precourt Institute for Energy, and Director of the Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Sciences. He received a BS in Physics, BS and MS in Electrical Engineering from MIT (1993), and a PhD in Physics from Princeton University (1997). He was formerly a Member of Technical Staff at Bell Laboratories (1996-2003) and Professor at the University of Tokyo (2003-2010). His research is in condensed matter and materials physics, with a focus on correlated electrons and emergent phenomena in quantum materials, and heterostructures for energy applications and devices. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and member of the National Academy of Sciences. Recognitions include the MRS Outstanding Young Investigator
Award (2005), the IBM Japan Science Prize (Physics, 2008), the Ho-Am Prize (Science, 2013), the Europhysics Prize (2014), and the McGroddy Prize (2024).