• Atomic Physics
• Biophysics Theory and Experiment
• Cond Matter Experiment Faculty
  • Ali Yazdani
  • Nai Phuan Ong
  • M. Zahid Hasan
  • Robert H. Austin
  • Sandra Troian (Chem Eng)
  • Daniel C. Tsui (Elec Eng)
  • Paul M. Chaikin (at NYU)

• Condensed Matter Theory
• Cosmology Experiment
• Cosmology Theory
• High Energy Experiment
• High Energy Theory
• Mathematical Physics
• Particle and Nuclear Astrophysics

• Quantitative and Computational Biology
• Cosmology at Princeton
• Lewis-Sigler Institute
• Princeton Center for Theoretical Physics
• Princeton Institute for the Science
  and Technology of Materials

Professor Chaikin is Professor Emeritus at Princeton, currently teaching at NYU. "Soft and Hard Condensed Matter" We are engaged in many experimental investigations in "Hard" (quantum electronic physics, and low temperature physics) and "Soft" (statistical mechanics of phase transitions, colloids, polymers, hydrodynamics) condensed matter. And in many case we sit at the interface, using physics and techniques from one sub field in the other. Colloids - Colloids, either hard spheres or charged polystyrene spheres in aqueous suspension- Polyballs with sufficiently strong interactions that they can crystallize at room temperature. Since we can control the strength and range of the interactions as well as the particle densities, these are ideal model systems to study solids, liquids, glasses, compounds, thermodynamic transitions, elasticity, viscosity, diffusion, hydrodynamic instabilities and nonlinear flow. Gravitational effects are balanced with a counterflow of solvent (the world's slowest fluidized bed), or removed by performing experiments in space. We study these phenomena using light and x-ray scattering, digital imaging, microscopy, laser tweezers and mechanical measurements. This research is a collaborative endeavor with the group of Prof. W. B. Russel in Chemical Engineering. Our aim is both the understanding of very fundamental problems, such as the liquid-solid transition, the existence of glasses, the effects of long range hydrodynamic interactions and the use of these techniques for colloidal architecture to create new and unusual structures. Our experiments have flown on several space shuttle microgravity missions and we have a continuing effort devoted to colloids, complex fluids microscopic manipulation in microgravity. Nano-Lithography with diblock copolymers: Diblock copolymers consist of two segments of incompatable polymers A-A-A--A-, and -B--B-B-B chemically bound at one of their ends. The separate polymers would phase separate (like oil and water) but they are tied together. The best they can do is microphase separate into A rich and B rich regions which form periodic lamella, cylinders in a hexagonal pattern or spheres on an FCC lattice (along with more exotic phases).The periodicities are typically on the scale of 5-50 of nanometers. We have been studying thin films of these materials for use in lithography on a density and spacing scale unavailable with any present technology. For example we have been able to produce periodic dots, and holes which cover a semiconductor at a density of 3x1012 (3 trillion) for a 3 inch wafer. The fundamental aspects of this study involve how ordered structures evolve from disorder in two dimensions. There is both orientational and periodic order that appears in the crystalline and liquid crystalline patterns that the diblocks form. And a variety of experimental techniques allow us to study how defects (dislocations and disclinations) can rearrange in response to temperature and applied fields. Low dimensional strongly correlated electron systems The family of quasi-one-dimensional layered superconductors (e.g. (TMTSF)2PF6) are probably the most interesting electronic materials ever discovered. As temperature, pressure and magnetic field are changed, this material is a metal, semi-metal, semi-conductor, insulator, antiferromagnetic, and superconducting and exhibits nonlinear spin density wave transport, spectacular angular dependent magnetoresistance and the Quantum Hall Effect. Recently discovered phenomena include decoupling of the layers by application of a parallel magnetic field, transitions from metallic to insulating states as the magnetic field is rotated relative to the crystal axes, non-Fermi liquid effects and triplet superconductivity. The experimental techniques employed in these studies involve, high pressure, high magnetic fields (sometimes at the National High Magnetic Field lab), low temperatures, transport, thermal, magnetic, elastic and NMR meaurements. These techniques are also applied to other strongly correlated systems.

S e l e c t e d P u b l i c a t i o n s:

"Principles of condensed matter physics", P. M. Chaikin and T. C. Lubensky, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, 1995) "Crystallization of Hard Sphere Colloids in \mu - Gravity", J. Zhu, M. Li, W. Meyer, R. H. Ottewill, STS-73 Space Shuttle Crew, W. B. Russel, P. M. Chaikin, Nature 387 883 (1997). "Long-Range Correlations in Sedimentation", P. N. Segre, E. Herbolzheimer and P. M. Chaikin, , Phys. Rev. Lett. 79 2574 (1997). "Block Copolymer-Lithography: Periodic Arrays of ~1011 Holes in 1 Square Centimeter", Miri Park, C. Harrison, P. M. Chaikin, R. A. Register, and D. H. Adamson, Science 276 1401 (1997). "Depth Profiling Block Copolymer Microdomains", C. Harrison, M. Park, P. Chaikin, R. A. Register, D. H. Adamson and N. Yao, Macromolecules 31, 2185 (1998). "Magic Angles and the Ground States in (TMTSF)2PF6, E. I. Chashechkina, and P. M. Chaikin, Phys. Rev. Lett. 80, 2181 (1998). "The Quantum-Classical Metal", D.G. Clarke, S. P. Strong, P. M. Chaikin, E. I. Chashechkina, Science 279, 2071 (1998). "Layer by Layer Imaging of Diblock Copolymer Films with a Scanning Electron Microscope", C. Harrison, M. Park, R.A. Register, D.H. Adamson, and N. Yao, Polymer 39 2733 (1998) Z. Cheng, W.B. Russel, and P.M. Chaikin "Controlled growth of hard-sphere colloidal crystals", Nature 401, 893 - 895 (1999).