Theory predicts the existence of some peculiar phases of quantum condensed matter systems that have multiple degrees of freedom with very low energy, when localized “defects” are introduced. I shall focus on a class of these phases where each defect has half of a conventional degree of freedom, and the defects may be considered as sites for localized zero-energy states of a “Majorana fermion”. Such defects would also exhibit the intriguing property of “non-Abelian statistics” -- i.e., if various defects can be moved around each other, or if two identical defects can be interchanged, the result is a unitary transformation on the quantum mechanical state that depends on the order in which operations are performed but is insensitive to many other details. In my talk, I will try to explain these various concepts and discuss the attempts to realize them in condensed matter systems.

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J.D. Tovar will be presenting a seminar titled Intra- and inter-molecular approaches to encourage energy transport in organic electronic materials. 

Abstract: Several emerging energy technologies require flexible and solution-processable organic-based electronic materials capable of specific degrees of energy transport in order to achieve desired functions.  The range of materials (and applications) is quite diverse, as exemplified by new materials that can facilitate photovoltaic, light emitting or transistor behavior.  The molecular requirements necessary to achieve these functions vary greatly, and this lecture will highlight fundamental structural considerations relevant to the design of materials that can foster or otherwise regulate efficient energy/charge migration. One aspect involves the use of unusual aromatic building blocks with relatively low degrees of resonance stabilization that can encourage the intramolecular electronic delocalization of charge carriers. Another aspect deals with alternative ways to control intramolecular delocalization of polymer charge carriers through “evolved aromaticity.”  A final aspect involves the control of intermolecular electronic delocalization through the use of water-soluble oligopeptides attached to pi-conjugated oligomers that self-assembly into fibrillar bioelectronic nanostructures containing internal pi-stacked electronic conduits. In all cases, the making, breaking and stacking of aromatic rings is of utmost importance.

Recent references

D. R. Levine, M. A. Siegler and J. D. Tovar, “Thiophene-fused borepins as directly functionalizable boron-containing -electron systems,” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 7132-7139.

J. D. Tovar, “Prospecting in Hückel space: from Hinokitiol to non-benzenoid organic electronic materials,” Chem. Rec. (introductory essay for the Tetsuo Nozoe Autograph Book project), 2014, 14, 214-225.

J. D. Tovar, “Supramolecular construction of optoelectronic biomaterials,” Acc. Chem. Res. 2013, 46, 1527-1537.

A. M. Fraind, G. Sini, C. Risko, L. R. Ryzhkov, J.-L. Brédas and J. D. Tovar, “Charge delocalization through benzene, naphthalene, and anthracene bridges in pi-conjugated oligomers: an experimental and quantum chemical study,” J. Phys. Chem. B 2013, 117, 6304-6317.

Faculty Host: Dr. John Anthony

A one day symposium

April 25, 2015

The University of Kentucky

Center Theater, Student Center

10 am – 5pm

Free and open to the public

Keynote: Douglas Armato, Director, University of Minnesota Press

Featured speakers:

Margy Avery, Senior Acquisitions Editor, MIT Press

Shoshana Berger, Editorial Director, IDEO

Maria Bonn, Editor, Journal of Electronic Publishing

Jeff Ullrich, past CEO, Earwolf

Networked Publishing asks speakers to question or trace the future or present of digital publishing, particularly as scholarly work and university interests identify themselves as part of larger networks of meaning, interaction, professionalism, and education. What must digital publishing do to continue the promotion of ideas to both specialized and general audiences as our forms of communication continue to change? What is digital publishing currently doing in response to new scholarly demands? What are writers doing to better utilize platforms, media, strategies, audience interaction, or other features?

Academic publishing has dealt with a variety of incidents and narratives over the last several years regarding its ability to succeed in the digital era. We are asking invited speakers to address the challenges, needs, failures, successes, experiences, provocations, and other related topics to the future or present situation of digital publishing as a scholarly and/or academic exercise. Speakers will address audio, print, visual, and other forms of digital publishing.

Please, join the UK Appalachian Center for a SWAP (Sharing Work on Appalachia in Progress) meeting with Domenica Farinella, a Visiting Scholar from the University of Cagliari, Italy. The talk title is "Biodiverstiy Lost and Regained in Sardinian Agriculture." This will be held at the UK Appalachian Center from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 23, 2014. This is a free event for students, faculty, and staff, and lunch is provided.

Please, join the UK Appalachian Center for an Appalachian Forum in our Speaker Series on Civil Rights, Labor and Environmental Social Movements in Appalachia. This event is free and open to the public and will be held on Tuesday, November 18, 2014 from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in room 213 of Kastle Hall. This event will feature a screening of the film Up the Ridge, a documentary about the American Prison system. There will be a discussion of the film after the viewing. Our guests for the film discussion are Amelia Kirby, filmmaker and Development Director at the Appalachian Citizens Law Center and Melynda Price, UK Law faculty and Director of the African American & Africana Studies Program.

Joe Goodkin's Odyssey is a 30-minute original musical composition for solo acoustic guitar and voice, a folk opera that tells the story of Homer's Odyssey in a series of 24 short songs.

The MuSun experiment will determine the μd capture rate (μ−+d → n+n+e) from the doublet hyperfine state d, of the muonic deuterium atom in the 1S ground state to a precision of 1.5%. Modern Effective Field Theories (EFT) predict that an accurate measurement of d would determine the two nucleon weak axial current. This will help in understanding weak nuclear interactions such as the stellar thermonuclear proton-proton fusion reactions, neutrino interactions and double beta decay. The experiment took place in the E3 beamline of Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) using a muon beam. Muons were stopped in a cryogenic time projection chamber (cryo-TPC) filled with D2 gas. This was surrounded by plastic scintillators and multiwire proportional chambers for detecting the decay electrons and an array of eight liquid scintillators for detecting neutrons. The goal of this dissertation is to measure the dμd quartet-to-doublet fusion ratio (q : d) and μd hyperfine rate (qd) using the fusion neutrons from μ− stops in D2 gas. The dμd molecules undergo muon catalyzed fusion (MCF) reactions from the doublet and the quartet state with rates d and q, yield 2.45 MeV monoenergetic fusion neutrons. Encoded in the time dependence of the fusion neutrons are the dμd formation rates d, q and qd. Consequently, the investigation of the fusion neutron time spectrum enables the determination of these kinetics parameters that are important in the extraction of d from the decay electron time spectrum. The final results of this work yield q : d = 82.05 ± 4.01 and qd = 39.67 ± 0.4 μs−1. 1