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Department of Physics

The Cavendish Laboratory
 

Collective Quantum PhenomenaCollective phenomena are the defining feature of condensed matter. Our researches in this area are bound together by using common tools - especially field theoretic methods - to address different physical problems. These include the development of ordered quantum states, for example quantum Hall systems, superconductivity and magnetism in strongly correlated metals, Bose-Einstein condensation of dilute gases and of excitons in semiconductors, and quantum critical phenomena in general.

A complementary thread of our research involves quantum coherent phenomena in bulk and mesoscopic systems, especially the destruction of phase coherence by disorder and inelastic scattering. Much of our work is motivated by experiment, often in direct collaboration with experimental groups.

Cooper has made significant contributions to the understanding of rotating Bose condensates and non-abelian phases. Littlewood and co-workers have carried out a wide range of work including fundamental contribution to the understanding of manganites and extensive work on polaritons and excitons in semiconductors, including Bose-Einstein condensation of excitons. Simons continues to develop the application of path integral techniques to real world problems involving disorder and correlations, most recently in ultracold atoms, but has also developed new activities in biology.