Polshyn Group

Emergent electronic phenomena in 2D materials

Electrons confined to two dimensions can behave in unique and fascinating ways. For example, the quantum mechanical motion of electrons in certain 2D materials can acquire striking collective characters. These emergent strongly correlated electronic states manifest topological order, superconductivity, magnetism, and other electronic orders. The Polshyn Group experimentally explores such novel electronic states and investigates their fundamental properties.

Graphene and other van der Waals (vdW) materials open exciting opportunities to create new strongly correlated 2D electronic systems. Combining atomically thin crystals of these materials in different ways allows one to efficiently tune the strengths and character of the electronic interactions. The Polshyn Group uses advanced nanofabrication techniques to create clean and exceptionally tunable devices of vdW materials. The group employs ultra-low-temperature electronic transport measurements, scanning probe microscopy, and other experimental techniques to uncover the physics of the correlated electrons harbored in these devices. The group’s research aims to answer fundamental physics questions regarding exotic electronic states and establish the physics background for conceptually new electronic devices and qubits.