School of Physics Fall Colloquium Series-Dr. Qimiao Si

Speaker: Dr. Qimiao Si

Host: Zhu-Xi Luo

Title:  Quantum phases driven by strong correlations and topology 

Abstract:The quantum era is well underway, bringing with it a rapid expansion in the scope and potential of quantum materials research. In this colloquium, I will begin with a gentle introduction to the quantum world and, through the lenses of wave-particle duality of electrons in solids, introduce the modern concepts of strong correlations and electronic topology.

I will illustrate how these two frameworks offer a two-way avenue for discovering and understanding new quantum states of matter. One example is correlation-driven topological metals in heavy fermion systems. Another is topology-induced quantum fluctuations that nucleate unconventional superconductivity in flat-band moiré structures. I will conclude with a discussion on emerging opportunities and future prospects in this overarching field.

Bio: Qimiao Si is the Harry C. and Olga K. Wiess Professor of Physics at Rice University and Director of the university’s Extreme Quantum Materials Alliance (eQMA). A theoretical physicist, Prof. Si has made foundational contributions to the field of strongly correlated electron systems. His research includes quantum criticality and strange metallicity, high-temperature superconductivity, correlated topological matter, entanglement witnesses in many-body systems, and heavy fermion physics.

Prof. Si earned his B.S. from USTC and his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, followed by postdoctoral appointments at Rutgers University and UIUC. His work has been recognized with many honors. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the British Institute of Physics, and is a former Sloan Research Fellow. He received a Humboldt Research Award in 2012, was selected as a Ulam Distinguished Scholar at Los Alamos National Laboratory in 2018, and was named a Vannevar Bush Fellow in 2023. He serves on the Board of the Aspen Center for Physics.