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Luiz SantosAssistant Professor

Awards and Honors

  • Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation postdoctoral fellowship (UIUC), 2015-2018
  • Perimeter Institute postdoctoral fellowship, 2012-2015
  • Purcell fellowship, Harvard University, 2007

Education

Ph.D, Harvard University, 2012

Publications

View publications on Google Scholar.

Research

Research Area

Theoretical condensed matter physics. Entanglement, Quantum Hall Effect and Fractional Chern Insulators, topological insulators and superconductors, Majorana fermions and parafermions.

Research Interests

I am a theorist interested in quantum many-body physics. A particular focus of my research is toward topological phases of matter, which are systems exhibiting universal properties that depend on the topology of the many-body wavefunction rather than on the microscopic details. The quintessential example of a topological phase is realized in the Fractional Quantum Hall Effect, where electrons, confined in two dimensions and subject to an external magnetic field, form a phase of matter with quasiparticles carrying a fraction of the electron's charge and possessing quantum statistical properties distinct from bosons and fermions.

In recent years, the synergy between new theoretical ideas and experimental discoveries has greatly advanced our knowledge of topological systems and, more generally, of phases of matter.

Topological phases are characterized by their quantum many-body entanglement instead of a local order parameter. One of my interests is understanding the constraints imposed by symmetries on the entanglement properties of symmetry-protected topological (SPT) states, and how this knowledge can guide toward their experimental realizations. This research direction has led to our proposal of realizing SPT phases in periodically driven systems. I am also currently investigating the strong coupling between collective bosonic modes (e.g. phonons) and fermions in SPT systems such as topological insulators and superconductors.

Furthermore, another goal of my research is to understand how the break down of Galilean invariance caused by strong lattice effects influences the hierarchy of fractional quantum Hall states. This question has direct implications in the characterization of topological order in Fractional Chern Insulators, proposed in 2011 by my collaborators and myself, as well in understanding recent experiments on moire' superlattices in applied magnetic fields.