Functional disorder in complex systems and materials
We study dynamic disorder, playing a fundamental role in functionality of complex matter, by applying physical statistics to big data set collected by high spatiotemporal resolution probes. Complex matter can be found in different fields from quantum science to biology.
The research work is carried out mainly in material science and biophysics using time and space resolved Synchrotron X-ray scattering techniques, X ray microscopy, neutron diffraction and spectroscopy. We developed applications of statistical physics and spatial statistics to Scanning X ray scattering measurements to study the evolution of complex and heterogeneous structures in out of equilibrium systems. Recent case studies are:
i) Imaging of defects organization and formation of superstructures, superstripes, supercrystals [1-2]
ii) manipulation and control of competing interactions in quantum materials [1-2]
iii) spatiotemporal fluctuations of superstructures and Lévy statistics in biophysics [3]
iv) hybrid metal and magnetic nanoparticles and nanoclusters [4]
– Campi, G., Bianconi, A., Poccia, N., Bianconi, G., Barba, L., Arrighetti, G., … & Burghammer, M. (2015). Inhomogeneity of charge-density-wave order and quenched disorder in a high-T c superconductor. Nature, 525(7569), 359-362.
– Fratini, M., Poccia, N., Ricci, A., Campi, G., Burghammer, M., Aeppli, G., & Bianconi, A. (2010). Scale-free structural organization of oxygen interstitials in La 2 CuO 4+ y. Nature, 466(7308), 841-844.
– Campi, G., Di Gioacchino, M., Poccia, N., Ricci, A., Burghammer, M., Ciasca, G., & Bianconi, A. (2017). Nanoscale correlated disorder in out-of-equilibrium myelin ultrastructure. ACS nano, 12(1), 729-739.
– Suber, L., Imperatori, P., Pilloni, L., Caschera, D., Angelini, N., Mezzi, A., … & Campi, G. (2018). Nanocluster superstructures or nanoparticles? The self-consuming scaffold decides.Nanoscale, 10(16), 7472-7483.