Physics Colloquium with Chunhui Du
Quantum Sensing of Quantum Materials by Chunhui (Rita) Du
Recently, spin defect-based quantum sensing has made transformative advances in cutting-edge scientific research and technological innovation. The high field sensitivity, nanoscale spatial resolution together with excellent measurement modalities of quantum spin defects open a range of opportunities at the forefront of materials science, condensed matter physics, and quantum research. Many of the advantages behind this approach result from the quantum mechanical nature of the sensors offering functionalities not available to their classical counterparts. In this talk, I will present our recent work on using scanning-probe nitrogen-vacancy (NV) quantum microscopy to investigate emergent quantum materials and devices with nanoscale spatial resolution. Specifically, we utilized NV centers to investigate the exotic magnetic and topological properties of moiré quantum matters [1, 2], magnetic noise enviroment of an on-chip superconducting resonator [3], and surface magnetism of an altermagnetic material [4]. Lastly, I will extend my discussion to briefly present our ongoing efforts on exploring next-generation van der Waals quantum sensing technologies using color centers beyond NV centers [5, 6, 7].
Chunhui Du is an Associate Professor of Physics at Georgia Institute of Technology. She received her Ph.D. from The Ohio State University in 2015. She worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University from 2015 to 2019. Chunhui’s current research focuses on developing color-center-based quantum sensing approaches to study emergent condensed matter physics. Chunhui Du has received the National Science Foundation (NSF) Career Award (2021), Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) Young Investigator Award (2021), Department of Energy (DOE) Early Career Award (2022), Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Award (2023), Sloan Research Fellowship (2024), and International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) Early Career Scientist Prize (2022).
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