Condensed matter physics is a broad field of inquiry encompassing size scales from the atomic to human and energy scales from 0.1 eV to several eV.  The field emerged in the 1970s as an extension of successful solid state (crystalline) physics to include various types of soft matter including liquids, liquid crystals, self-assembled membranes, polymers and cooperative processes including phase transitions and critical phenomena.

The majority of the research in the Condensed Matter Group involves exploration of dynamics in complex materials using a variety of spectroscopy techniques.  Current research areas include:

Cryopreservation - investigation of the role of simple sugar solutions in the cryopreservation of biological proteins and tissues using both photon correlation spectroscopy and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy.

Supercooled Liquids - investigation of the dynamics of ultraslow liquids near their glass transition point using photon correlation spectroscopy.

Ion Conduction in Amorphous Solids - investigation of ion dynamics in glass materials using impedance spectroscopy.

David L. Sidebottom, Ph.D.

sidebottom@creighton.edu

tel. 402 280 2935

fax. 402 280 2140