Meet LINXS guest researcher Andrew Boothroyd who is coming to LINXS in May

LINXS is delighted to welcome Andrew Boothroyd as a guest researcher from 1st of May to the end of June. Andrew is a Professor of Physics at the Clarendon Laboratory at Oxford University, and a member of the LINXS Scientific Advisory Board, SAB, since 2021.

Andrew is a Professor of Physics at the Clarendon Laboratory at Oxford University, and a member of the LINXS Scientific Advisory Board, SAB.

What attracted you to LINXS as a guest researcher?

In 2021, I joined the Scientific Advisory Board of the LINXS and got to understand its mission to promote neutron and x-ray scattering science. Shortly after, I was fortunate to be granted one year of sabbatical leave from my teaching and administration duties at Oxford University during 2022/23. I saw this as a golden opportunity to spend some time embedded in LINXS where there is a growing network of scientists with interests in using neutron and x-ray techniques in basic and applied research. This is a very important time for neutron and x-ray science in Sweden and Europe generally, and I am excited to be where the action is for a short time.

What do you want to gain from your stay here?

First, there would be opportunities to interact with the scientific community in Lund surrounding the ESS and MAX-IV. Second, I hope to contribute to LINXS activities generally, such as its meetings and workshops. Third, I hope to seek out and interact with individual scientists at Lund University and at the research facilities whose scientific interests align with my own. Fourth, I hope to visit other Swedish universities to discuss topics of common interest and to promote the LINXS. Finally, the visit will be an opportunity for some quality time in which to think.

What are your research interests?

I am an experimental physicist with broad interests in quantum materials. These are crystalline solids whose electronic behaviour is dominated by quantum effects. Well known examples are superconductors and various types of magnetic materials, and recently a major new research activity has developed around materials called topological semimetals. My research exploits neutron and x-ray scattering methods to study the atomic-scale structure and dynamics of quantum materials. Research in this field is revealing some wonderful new insights into the states of matter, and is helping to develop a better understanding of how quantum mechanics influences the world around us.

What excites you the most currently related to the use of neutron and X-ray scattering methods?

Advances in science are often achieved though the development of new experimental techniques. The facilities under development at the ESS and MAX-IV will help scientists look deeper into materials to find out what endows them with their special characteristics, and that is what excites me about the present state of neutron and X-ray scattering methods.

Researchers are very welcome to contact Andrew to learn more about his research, and set up individual meetings.