Tohu Paerua, AhupūngaoPostgraduate Physics

Website: http://nano-optics.ac.nz

Keywords: nano-optics, photonics, spectroscopy, advanced materials, nanotechnology, electromagnetism, optics

My research centres on advancing Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) techniques and applying them to probing transport, dynamics and structure in soft matter and porous materials. This includes the development and use of pulsed-field gradient NMR to study molecular diffusion in microporous  (e.g. zeolites) and soft matter materials, Rheo-NMR, combining deformation / shear with NMR and MRI to explore how complex fluids such as polymer or surfactant systems respond under flow, with applications in material and food sciences, studies of granular transport, for instance using MRI velocimetry to test granular flow models, and expanding NMR methodology into low-field or portable NMR methods.

An ongoing theme is pushing the boundaries of what the NMR-toolbox can measure — higher spatial or temporal resolution, coupling between mechanical or flow deformation and molecular response, and bridging the gap between model systems (e.g. synthetic porous solids) and real-world/complex systems (e.g. soil, soft matter).

Experimental Materials Science, Nanostructures and Nanosciences, Catalytic Materials, Green Ammonia Production, Crystal Growth Processes, Electronic Materials.

Franck's background is in experimental materials science with industry application in mind. His professional identity and interest are undoubtedly defined by bridging the gap between fundamental research and technological applications by developing products and processes that can be industrialised and have commercial impact.

Franck investigates  how a new class of materials, so call rare-earth-based materials, can contribute to the development of new markets and emerging technologies such as, memory element devices for faster and more energy-efficient computers and data centers, light emitting diodes for energy savings and catalytic materials for green ammonia production.

Students can be involved in all aspects of this research, including:
- Epitaxial growth and fundamental properties of rare-earth-based materials,
- Materials for next generation electronics: spintronics, memory elements, light emitting diodes,
- New materials for catalytic applications such as ammonia production,
- Chemical engineering and plant design for green ammonia production.

Franck's research involves collaborations with several other research groups in NZ groups (University of Otago and Canterbury) and overseas institutions (University of British Columbia and CNRS).

Ben is an experimentalist specialising in condensed matter physics where he studies the magnetic and electronic properties of novel materials, and the coupling between them. Much of his current research is centred on the rare earth nitride series of materials, which combine rich magnetic physics with the tunable electronic properties of semiconductors. He is keenly interested in understanding the fundamental physics that underpins them, and recently he has broadened his focus to device physics with the aim to enable next-generation superconducting computing and quantum computing by exploiting the rare earth nitrides in memory devices. He jointly runs a thin-film deposition laboratory, and he utilises a wide range of electrical transport, magnetisation, and spectroscopic characterisation tools. He also makes regular use of synchrotron facilities in Australia, Europe, and the USA to carry out x-ray absorption spectroscopy, x-ray magnetic circular dichroism, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy.