Strain Engineering of Quantum Materials

Strain is a well-known tuning knob, with epitaxial strain having profound effects on material properties. I am interested in engineering strain gradients and complex strain structures for disorder-free control of material properties — which entails careful structural characterization at the sub-angstrom level.

In α-MnTe, substrate-induced strain modifies the Mn local environment, shifts dd excitations measured by RIXS, and controls the magnitude of the anomalous Hall effect. EXAFS analysis at the Mn K-edge quantifies these structural distortions, revealing bond-length changes that correlate with the strain-dependent magnetic properties. This approach extends to other systems including magnetocaloric AlFe₂B₂ and frustrated magnet thin films.