Five thrusts, one method. Each begins with a physical question, is answered with first-principles calculation, and ends with a quantity an experiment can measure.
Ongoing joint work with Prof. Jinsang Kim (University of Michigan) and Prof. Babak Anasori (Purdue University). Both studies are in progress and unpublished, so the cards describe the questions, not the results.
Directions that follow from work already in hand, not aspirations.
Spin defects as calibrated sensors. The three 2026 hBN papers provide spin–strain coefficients, Stark coefficients, and hyperfine fingerprints for two carbon-related defects. The next step is a full spin-Hamiltonian library across defect models, charge states, and isotope patterns, so that an observed ODMR spectrum can be inverted to a defect identity and a local strain or field. The directed study on NV centers in diamond and its 2005–2008 diamond-vacancy work supply the comparison system.
Coupled electron, phonon, ion, and spin responses in layered materials. Plumbene (electronic phase, magnetism, thermal conductivity), SnTe/NbSe₂ (charge partitioning), FeOCl (proton defects), and rhombohedral graphene (orbital moment under strain) are each one response of a layered system. The 2026–27 NSF ACCESS allocation, titled for benchmarking coupled electron, phonon, and ion transport in layered materials, is the computational foundation for treating these responses together.
Theory-guided experimental collaboration. Every prediction on this site names the measurement that would test it. This program is seeking experimental partners in ODMR on hBN, growth of plumbene and phosphorene on the predicted substrates, and transport in strained rhombohedral graphene.
Device-relevant materials modelling. The same first-principles toolkit extends to application-defined problems — electrode materials for scaled electronics and high-temperature alloys — where the design rules are the deliverable.