Do Weak Topological Insulators Exist Outside Theoretical Mathematical Concepts?

Markus Morgenstern

Recent research has shown that solid materials can be classified based on their electronic band structure using the abstract mathematical concept of topology. In this video MARKUS MORGENSTERN explains how interdisciplinary research found the first material of a topological type called “weak topological insulators” and how this might solve problems in the field of quantum computation.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21036/LTPUB10189

Researcher

Markus Morgenstern is Professor and Head of the Department of Physics at RWTH Aachen University. In 2009 he was the elected coordinating director at JARA, the Jülich Aachen Research Alliance. Morgenstern’s research looks at electro-systems on an atomic-scale. As such, Morgenstern is concerned with the theoretical aspects of mathematics and physics, and how these theoretical paradigms translate in reality.

RWTH Aachen University (Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen)

"With its 260 institutes in nine faculties, RWTH Aachen is among the leading European scientific and research institutions." "The Excellence Initiative of the German federal and state governments provided a huge boost to the further development of RWTH Aachen University. The institutional strategy on which the successful Excellence Initiative application was based has, in the meantime, been expanded to form a long-term strategy to strengthen all the areas of the University and enhance their profiles. In the process it has gained great momentum, which can be seen, among other things, in the extensive building activities. Visible evidence of this is the RWTH Aachen Campus that is being developed in close cooperation with industry and which is to form one of the largest research campuses in Europe. Students and employees of RWTH Aachen will benefit equally from these developments and are expressly invited to get involved in shaping the individual initiatives." "RWTH Aachen has set for itself clearly defined goals. By the year 2020, it aims to be the best German University of technology and one of the top five in Europe as measured by academic output, by the quality of its graduates, and by external funding." ( Source )