Research in topical areas of condensed matter theory, both in quantum matter and statistical mechanics and soft condensed matter physics, is conducted at the Centre for Condensed Matter Theory (CCMT). The activities of the members of CCMT are broadly classified into three overlapping research themes – Quantum Matter, Matter Far from Equilibrium, and Soft and Living Matter.
Modern life critically depends on the fundamental advances in quantum matter through the understanding of the states of systems with many quantum particles, specifically electrons. Symmetry, topology, entanglement, and strong correlation have emerged as the fundamental organizing principles to explore quantum states of matter. The research in CCMT exploits these concepts to study and model topological quantum matter, like topological insulators and quantum Hall systems, low-dimensional layered, interfacial and twisted materials, like moire systems, superconductivity, magnetism, non-Fermi liquids, and other strong correlations phenomena in solids and cold atomic systems.
A vast and diverse set of systems, ranging from a wire carrying a current or a quantum computer evolving under operations of quantum gates to most biological processes in nature, comes under the rubric of matter far from equilibrium. The corresponding states often have interesting collective properties quite distinct from what is seen in equilibrium. Studying matter far from equilibrium is thus one of the most active areas of physics research. CCMT has several faculty members who work on different aspects of the far-from-equilibrium physics of classical and quantum systems, such as glasses, fluid turbulence, active matter, theory of time-resolved studies of condensed-matter and cold-atom systems, driven quantum systems, many-body localization, non-Hermitian systems, and dynamics of quantum information and entanglement.
CCMT has a vigorous research program in soft and living matter, focusing mainly on biological and biology-inspired problems. Physics enters biology through mechanics, electrophysiology, and information. The mechanical phenomena are collective, and information is intimately tied up with entropy. The study of the living state is thus a natural imperative for physicists working in condensed matter and statistical physics. Within biological physics, the problems pursued include computational studies of the structure, electrical properties, interactions, and complexation of DNA, multiscale mathematical modeling of cardiac tissue with a view to understanding and controlling arrhythmias, and active matter as the theoretical framework for the mechanical and statistical properties of living materials.
Even while pursuing conceptually interesting theoretical questions, members of the Centre work very closely with experimental groups. There are several examples of works where pioneering experiments and theory emerged from this interaction.