Exploring the Underlying Physics of New Classes of Quantum Matter

The field of condensed matter physics has been rejuvenated over recent years with the discovery of new classes of materials with remarkable properties and great potential for application. This includes topological insulators, Weyl semi-metals, topological superconductors, atomically thin semiconductors and the ability to dynamically control their remarkable properties by applying external fields (e.g. laser pulses). There is much work still to be done to fully understand the physics of these material systems and the quantum mechanical interactions that drive the macroscopic properties.
In parallel, over the past decade the development of sophisticated ultrafast-laser based, multidimensional coherent spectroscopy techniques has enabled insight into a range of complex material systems. We have recently brought these approaches to the problem of high temperature superconductivity, revealing new insights and opening the door to many more experiments. This project seeks to continue and extend this work to understand the physics of the new classes of quantum materials described above.