Abstract:
Superconductivity, or a true zero-resistance state, is known to originate from the creation of Cooper pairs of electrons that can condense into a phase-coherent macroscopic quantum state. The physics behind the creation of this state as well as the new physics this state can enable are beautiful, exotic, and deeply rooted in the magic of quantum mechanics.
I will discuss recent experiments utilizing Einstein’s photoelectric effect (greatly improved since his days) that allow us to directly probe the nature of the Cooper pairs and the electronic interactions that give rise to these pairs in some novel superconductors. I will also discuss the recent wishful superconductor “LK99” including lessons learned for discovering new high temperature superconductors.
About the Speaker:
Dan Dessau is a professor in the Department of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, and Past-Chair of the Division of Materials Physics, American Physical Society. He received his PhD in Applied Physics from Stanford University in 1993, working with Professors W.E. Spicer and Zhi Xun Shen. He has been at the forefront of electronic spectroscopies of correlated electron systems for many years, especially for the development of high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) and laser-ARPES, for studies of the pairing symmetry and pseudogaps in cuprates, on the nature of colossal magnetoresistance in manganites, and studies of topological materials. His publications describing this work have been cited over 12,500 times.