Paul Freeman - Academic Staff

I am the Course Leader for Physics and Astrophysics on site courses. In my role as a Lecturer I lecture physics, and foundation year mathematics, as well as supervise final year projects. My research interests include strongly correlated electron materials such as superconductors, and quantum magnets using techniques of neutron scattering, muon spin rotation spectroscopy and x-ray scattering.

As Course Leader for Physics and Astrophysics I run the academic side of student's studies in our different courses, acting as a point of contact for all of the students on our courses. My current role includes teaching at the different levels of our courses from foundation and first year lecturing, through to final year project supervision. Alongside my Course Leader and teaching duties I have an active research portfolio, with a strong track record of publishing scientific papers in leading journals in my field of research. My research interests provide undergraduate students the opportunity to carry out research projects in active fields of research.

After undergraduate studies in Durham and obtaining my doctorate at Oxford, I worked as an instrument scientist and postdoctoral researcher in neutron scattering in France (ILL, Grenoble), Germany (HZB, Berlin) and Switzerland (EPFL, Lausanne), before moving to UCLan. At present I perform my research with collaborations with groups around the world. In the UK I currently collaborate with researchers at the University of Oxford, Durham University and Cardiff University. While internationally I have on going collaborations with researchers based in Switzerland, and Denmark along with past significant collaborations with researchers in France, Italy, and India. In my last job at EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland, I was part of a successful proposal for an estimated 12 Million Euros neutron scattering instrument Bifrost that is under construction at the European Spallation Source for neutrons in Lund, Sweden.

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My main research interest is investigating strongly correlated electron systems, with a specific interest in high temperature superconductivity. In strongly correlated electron systems electronic interactions between many electrons occur leading to collective behaviour, often resulting in unexpected effects. Superconductivity is one of the most dramatic examples of strong correlations, where the electrons pair up together and form a macroscopic phase across a material leading to zero electrical resistance when the material is sufficiently cooled. Quantum magnetism is an extension of my research interests into strongly correlated electron systems. In quantum magnets collective quantum fluctuations are enhanced by means of geometric frustration, tuning interaction parameters to be equal by applying magnetic fields or pressure, etc., so that new emergent collective magnetic states can be realised. Often it is only by studying the magnetic excitations of these quantum phases that the underlying physics can be determined and fundamental knowledge of quantum interactions gained. To undertake these research studies I use the complimentary techniques of neutron scattering, x-ray diffraction and µSR (spin rotation) at central research facilities. In Europe in I regularly use the spallation neutron sources ISIS, Oxfordshire (UK), and SINQ at PSI in Switzerland, as well as the reactor based neutron sources the ILL, Grenoble (France), and MLZ, Munich (Germany).

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Dr Paul Freeman

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