Quantum Science and Nanomaterials (QMat)

Petros STAVROULAKIS,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

I am a PhD student in the University of Strasbourg as part of the Doctoral School ED182. My research interests consist of searching for Beyond Standard Model physics indirectly by measuring the way in which rare decays of particles violate discrete symmetries of nature, using data provided by the Belle II experiment. Being an international collaboration that is based in Japan, this experiment was designed with this kind of research in mind and aims to significantly improve the precision of the measurements of its predecessor through greatly increasing the statistical power of its dataset, thus providing a much clearer indication of possible New Physics.

Swayangdipta BERA,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

I completed my Bachelors and Masters in Physics from IISER Bhopal, India where my research work focused on numerical simulations of energy transfer in ultracold Rydberg atomic system. Currently, I am a PhD student at CESQ (Centre Européen de Sciences Quantiques) as a part of the MOQS project. The general topic of my research is quantum simulation and computation with neutral atoms trapped in tweezers.

Shuzhe YANG,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

I am now a PhD student of ISIS-CESQ at University of Strasbourg, where I will help to generate and control the arbitrary pulse required for qubit gate implementation based on tweezer arrays of Rydberg-excited atoms and for digital quantum simulation which can solve some molecular physics problem.

Pacôme CHAPEL,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

After completing my master degree in inorganic chemistry at the University of Lille, I had the opportunity to study hybrid (organic/inorganic) material MOF (Metal Organic Frameworks) through many applications (catalysis, gas adsorption). Now I’m within the DCMI team at IPCMS for a 3 years thesis project. The general context of my team’s researches is the study of hybrid materials for magnetic/multiferroic properties, my project will be focused on the elaboration of 2D magnetic nanosheets and the possibility to couple the magnetic properties of the 2D nanosheets with other properties brought by the inorganic layers (luminescence, ferroelectricity, semi-conductivity…)

Léon SCHMIDT,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

I obtained my Master’s degree in “Materials Engineering and Nanosciences” from the University of Strasbourg while being a member of the ITI QMat.

In both Master’s internships, I have extensively used transmission electron microscopy as a research tool, and it is now at the centre of my research interests and of my thesis.

Under the direction of Dr. Walid BAAZIZ and Pr. Ovidiu ERSEN, I am studying the behaviour of photoanodes used in the photoelectrolysis of water to provide a source of green hydrogen, by means of electron microscopy correlated with other microscopy techniques (STXM on synchrotron…), to gain a better understanding of the phenomena involved, at the nanoscale.

Gaëlle SADOWSKI,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

PhD student in physics in research project for couplings of the Higgs boson to heavy quarks in future electron positron colliders and development of CMOS pixel sensors for trackers.

Satakshi PANDEY,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

I work on coupling and proximity effects in 2D and mixed dimensional heterostructures. The aim is to explore novel nanoelectronic and spintronic devices, taking advantage of 2D materials interfaced in van der Waals heterostructures or with spin/magnetic functional nanomaterial.

Gyandeep PRADHAN,
PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

We focus mainly on ferromagnetic resonance and spin wave propagation studies in thin films. I am currently interested in studying the effect of curvature in inducing the nonreciprocity of spin waves. We use microwave techniques to excite and detect the spin waves in a coplanar waveguide module.

Nicolas DARI BAKO

PhD student (2022 cohort)

Research interests:

I am a PhD student within the DNR team of the IPHC.
The general context of the team’s researches is the study of new nuclear reactors for nuclear energy of the future.
The team especially works on the improvement of the knowledge of experimental cross sections for neutron induced reaction of interest for nuclear reactors.
During my thesis, I will perform new experiments on several nuclei at EC/JRC/GELINA and GANIL/SPIRAL2/NFS.
These new measurements will provide crucial cross sections data that can be used for doing accurate reactors simulations.

Steve Dave WANSI WENDJI,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

After completing my 2nd year master’s degree in Condensed Matter and Nanophysics (MCN) at the University of Strasbourg with the Q-master 2020 fellowship, I started in October 2021 a three-year PhD project on the topic First-principles modeling and machine learning of complex oxide-based cathode materials for alkaline batteries. In this project, I am combinning DFT, first-principles molecular dynamics (FPMD) and machine leaning techniques to achieve a rational design and elaboration of novel glasses (G) and glass-ceramic (GC) materials. I shall exploit databases issued from DFT/FPMD calculations to develop versatile machine learning interatomic potentials for the class of materials considered. Approaches such as Gaussian Approximation Potential, Deep Potential Molecular Dynamics, and High-Dimensional Neural Network Potentials will be instrumental to the scope and targets of the project. The obtained machine learning potentials will be used to refine glass compositions and to perform large-size simulations of the targeted G and GC materials and interfaces.

Vincent HARDEL,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

After obtaining a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics in New Caledonia, I arrived in Strasbourg to join the Basic Physics Magistère of Strasbourg in 2018. I started a 3rd year of Physics degree, followed by the 1st year of master, while being part of QMat. Last year, I joined the M2 Condensed Matter and Nanophysics. In the second semester, I chose to do the end-of-study internship with Paul-Antoine HERVIEUX and Giovanni MANFREDI, at the IPCMS. We mainly worked on a way to simulate quantum mechanics from experiments based on purely classical phenomena. In July, I applied to the doctoral school and I was lucky enough to be selected. I am therefore entering the PhD programme this year, under the supervision of Giovanni MANFREDI, and I will continue to work on classical analogues of quantum mechanics for the next three years. However, I would like to explore other areas of quantum mechanics and statistical physics once my thesis is finished. For this, I have the ambition to go abroad, England, Spain, USA, Canada, …, in order to broaden my scientific knowledge. Eventually, I would like to become a professor-researcher and make a name for myself in the world of research, even if I am not closed to the world of business, or to all sorts of opportunities.

Jean SOUDIER,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

I’m working on particles sensor in HEP (High Energy Physics). Particularly, in the readout architecture of those sensors to optimize the bandwidth and the power consumption especially with the help of asynchronous design (event-based readout) and zero suppression method.

Henning Xavier,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

I’m studying light absorption, photovoltaic and plasmonic effects at a nanometer scale in promising new hybrid multilayer systems, especially ferroelectric covered with plasmonic nanoparticles. The goal is to deal with the interactions at play in those illuminated systems in depth, and to provide guidance on how to develop solar cells based on these materials.

Joanna WOLFF,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

My research project is about the exploration of magnetism in two dimensions and proximity effects in van der Waals magnetic heterostructures. To this aim, I fabricate and study nanoresonators made of suspended magnetic 2D membranes to probe, and further control, their magnetic order using strain. Nano-optomechanics and optical spectroscopies, two complementary experimental methods, are combined to probe the magnetic phase transition of these atomically-thin membranes.

Deshan Sandanayake,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

David PIANCA,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

Luís PIRES,
PhD student (2021 cohort)

Research interests:

Hartmann.Jean-Gabriel,
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I hold a B.Sc. in Physics and Applied Mathematics from the University of Cape Town (UCT) and a B.Eng. in Mechatronics Engineering from Nelson Mandela University (NMU), in South Africa. I completed my M.Sc. thesis in Applied Mathematics at UCT in 2020, where I studied information scrambling and chaos in many-body quantum systems.

I have joined IPCMS as part of the EUCOR QUSTEC Ph.D. programme, on the project “Hilbert Space Engineering of Nuclear Spin Qudits”. It is focused on the information processing capabilities of higher dimensional quantum states obtained from the hyperfine splitting of lanthanide single molecule magnet systems. Through this research, I aim to develop my theoretical and computational expertise within the field of quantum information and technology.

Manuel Morgado,
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I hold a 5-year B.Sc. degree from the Universidad Simón Bolívar (Venezuela) where I completed a 1-year thesis on quantum error correction with superconductors. In 2018 I completed a M.Sc. MCN at the Université de Strasbourg as a QMat fellow doing my master thesis on experimental cold atom physics. Currently, I am part of the EUCOR QUSTEC programme within the project entanglement generation using dissipative state engineering with Rydberg atoms in EQM at I.S.I.S. I hope to contribute to QMat together with other fellows, with the same research interests on quantum computing and technologies, in promoting and encouraging new networks and events in this field.

Rémi Pasquier,
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I am mainly interested in Theoretical Condensed matter physics, especially the study of electronic structure and transport through several techniques such as Density Functional Theory, Dynamical Mean Field Theory or Tight binding approaches.

Denis Janković,
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I am actively a part of the QMat community since the beginning of the graduate school in 2018, during this time I obtained my MSc diploma in Condensed Matter and Nanophysics and I am now doing a PhD studying the theory of the hyperfine interactions in lanthanide-organic complexes for quantum information processing. I continue to contribute to the QMat community through my involvement in the Young Investigators Group of QMat.

My main domain of interest are Quantum Computing, AMO Physics as well as Magnetism and Open Quantum Systems. More generally I’m interested in quantum technologies and the progress that is being made nowadays, all the while being very keen on theoretical approaches of those subjects.

Mohammed Guerboub, 
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I hold a MSc diploma in ”Physics of new materials and renewable energies” obtained in 2017 at University of Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah Fez/Morocco. My MSc project was centred on the “Renormalization of the Non-Ionizing-Energy-Loss calculation to estimate the displacement damage introduced by protons irradiation in GaAs by means of Monte Carlo simulations”.
I am now a PhD student at IPCMS within the framework of the QUSTEC programme with a project on “Nuclear quantum effects and magneto-electronic patterns of hybrid and disordered materials: Insights and design via first-principles molecular dynamics”.
This project is allowing me to build specific skills in mastering different computational methods (DFT, FPMD, MD, ML) and have access to high-performance computing facilities for the study of complex materials and their performance. Such materials show a large window of potential applications, from neuromorphic computing to conducting electrochemical devices.

Thomas Allard,
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I am working in theoretical mesoscopic physics, more especially in topological photonics. My research aims at understanding the behavior of plasmon-polariton excitations in low-dimensional metasurfaces which exhibit peculiar properties.

Valentina GIRELLI-CONSOLARO, 
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I am Valentina from Italy and I am a 1st year PhD student at IPCMS in Strasbourg. Since september 2019 I have been integrated to the QMat program.
After a bachelor degree in Physics in Bologna (Italy), I attended a 2-year master in Materials Science and Engeneering here in Strasbourg. My interests involve solid state physics,
2D materials and microscopy, but also environmental issues, equitable trade and durable development . I am grateful to the QMat program for giving students the opportunity to explore the huge universe of science and deepen our personal research.

Alex Fetida, 
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

After completing a master’s degree in applied physics at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), I started a PhD at the IPCMS in the STM group of the surfaces and interfaces department. Within this frame, I am using the scanning tunneling microscope to probe the magnetism of surfaces decorated with magnetic objects. For instance, those objects are nickelocene molecules, iron atoms or an island of cobalt atoms deposited on a copper surface.

Aleena Joseph, 
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

My research aims to extend the concept of strong light-matter interaction to magnetic materials and investigate material properties’ modification under strong coupling regime. I have previously worked on modeling logic gates using nanomagnets and investigating the tunability of FMR frequency of skyrmions using micromagnetic simulations.

Gaëtan Percebois, 
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I am working on quantum trasport in two-dimensionnal nanomaterials and I try to use deep neural network to analyze images from scanning gate microscopy. I perform my thesis in the team theoretical mesoscopic physics.

Guillermo Preisser, 
PhD student (2020 cohort)

Research interests:

I’m mainly interested in the study of open quantum systems. More specifically, I’m studying how dissipation affects entanglement in many-body open quantum systems, and explore the limits on which quantum many-body systems can be classically simulated.

Jean Nippert,
PhD student (2019 cohort)

Research interests:

I’m working on nuclear fusion reactions in massive stars, more precisely on the carbon burning using the STELLA (STELlar Laboratory). The aim is to reproduce fusion reactions at the energy close to the Gamov window, so we can understand better the univers’ evolution.

Rémi Goerlich,
PhD student (2019 cohort)

Research interests:

I’m working on Brownian motion in optical trap. These experiments are suited tools to test novel statistical mechanics developments,  mostly through their ability to resolve single stochastic processes and implementing the ideas of stochastic energetics.

Loïc Moczko,
PhD student (2019 cohort)

Research interests:

I am exploring the rich physics of 2D materials by studying suspended Van der Waals heterostructures. The idea behind my PhD project is to couple the optical properties of 2D materials with the nanomechanics of an atomically thin drumhead. My main interests concerns optical spectroscopies, microscopies, optomechanics and photonics.

Ulrich Noumbe,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I explore novel Van der Waals heterostructures by combinning 2D materials (graphene or TMDs) with others 2D materials or 0D materials (nanoparticles, colloids, molecules … ) to study electronic, optoelectronic and magnetic properties and functionalities.

Robin Pierron,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

My research centers on understanding the excellent efficiency of the ultrafast photoisomerization of biomimetic molecules to engineer new molecular functions.

Manouel Pichois,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

My research concerns the physical properties of binary nanoparticle superlattices, an array of possibilities

Maryna Hrytsaienko,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

My research aims to characterize and give an understanding of the carrier and spin dynamics in the GaN nanostructures (Quantum Dots) that we implement with the help of iltrafast optical experiments using pulsed laser

Tobias Wintermantel,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I am pursuing a joint PhD between the University of Strasbourg and the University of Heidelberg. My research includes laser cooling and high resolution imaging of ultracold potassium atoms and how long-range interactions mediated by Rydberg states give rise to new phases and dynamics of quantum gases.

Marion Hurier,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I work on absorption spectrum at nanoscale resolution with an atomic force microscope. I aim for a future as teacher-researcher in the field of nanosciences, nanomaterials or combine techniques with an atomic force microscopy

David Wellnitz,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I am interested in understanding and describing quantum many body systems. In particular, I research the interaction of light and matter to answer fundamental questions with practical applications.

Luis F. Pineres Rico,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

From my previous studies, I had already acquired a very strong theoretical background in particle physics and more particularly on standard model.  And currently a PhD student in physics at IPHC (University of Strasbourg). My thesis subject is on the cosmogenic background study of the JUNO neutrino experiment using the Top Tracker

Guido Masella,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I explore the physics of quantum many-body systems in and out of equilibrium, with emphasis on phases and phase transitions in (ultra)cold atomic gases. I am also deeply interested in developing numerical methods for solving many-body quantum problems.

Amir Khammari,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I’m using an ultrafast transmission electron microscope (UTEM) to study ultrafast transformations in nanomaterials (structural and chemical evolution of reversible and irreversible reactions). This microscope which has been developed at the IPCMS in Strasbourg (France), is able to obtain images, electron diffraction patterns, and electron energy-loss spectra (EELS) with nanometer and pico/nanosecond space–time resolution.

Sayali Shevate,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I work on the topic of quantum simulation of energy transport using Rydberg atoms. I aim to study how quantum effects influence the excitation transport, and find analogies with similar processes occurring in natural light harvesting molecules and synthetic optoelectronic materials.

Mauricio Gómez Viloria,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

I am currently working in theoretical mesoscopic physics.  The aim of my research is to understand spin–orbit coupling and how it can be engineered to manipulate the electronic transport in low-dimensional systems. Recently, I have also studied the unusual magnetism of gold nanoparticles.

Suvidyakumar Homkar,
PhD student (2018 cohort)

Research interests:

My research interest is in experimental condensed matter physics and spintronics. I am inclined towards applied physics and would like to extend my career further in innovative R&D projects.