Our group has developed probes to study the properties of very small crystals of interesting materials.  Experiments include electro-optic measurements of organic semiconductors and charge-density-wave materials using infrared diode lasers, thermal measurements (specific heat and thermal conductivity) using ac-calorimetry, and electromechanical measurements of charge-density-wave materials using RF techniques. Our current research is in close collaboration with the groups of Professor Kwok-Wai Ng and EKU Professor Xiunu Lin.

Graduate Students: Emily Bittle, Hao, Zhang, and Maryam Souri.

Here are some pictures from Summer 2011:    http://www.pa.uky.edu/~brill/GroupPix2011.pdf

Here is the Condensed Matter Group webpage: http://www.pa.uky.edu/condmat/

Brill Group Publications (2007-2012)

• “Anomalous itinerant magnetism in single-crystal Sr4Ru3O10: A thermodynamic and transport investigation”, G. Cao, S. Chikara, J.W. Brill, and P. Schlottmann, Phys. Rev. B  75, 024429 (2007). 
• “Specific Heat of (CaxSr1-x)2Ru3O7 Single Crystals”, V. Varadarajan, S. Chikara, V. Durairaj, X.N. Lin, G. Cao, and J.W. Brill, Solid State Commun., 141, 402 (2007).          
• “Charge Order Superstructure with Integer Iron Valence in Fe2OBO3”,  M. Angst, P. Khalifah, R.P. Hermann, H.J. Xiang, M.-H. Whangbo, V. Varadarajan, J.W. Brill, B.C. Sales, and D. Mandrus, Phys. Rev. Lett. 99. 086403 (2007). 
• “Electro-Optic Search for Critical Divergence of the Charge-Density-Wave Diffusion Constant at the Onset of Depinning”, L. Ladino, E.G. Bittle, M. Uddin, and J.W. Brill, Phys. Rev. B 76, 153104 (2007).     
• “Frequency domain simulations of charge-density-wave strains: Comparison with electro-optic measurements”, L. Ladino and J.W. Brill, Solid State Commun.145, 469 (2008). 
• “Phase transitions in LaFeAsO: structural, magnetic, elastic, and transport  properties, heat capacity and Mössbauer spectra”, M.A. McGuire, A.D. Christenson, A.S. Sefat,  B.C. Sales, M.D. Lumsden, R. Jin, E.A. Payzant, D. Mandrus, Y. Luan, V. Keppens, V. Varadarajan, J.W. Brill, R.P. Hermann, M.T. Sougrati, F. Grandjean, and G. J. Long, Phys. Rev. B 78, 094157 (2008). 
• “Electro-optic search for threshold divergence of the CDW diffusion constant in blue bronze”, L. Ladino and J.W. Brill, Physica B: Physics of Condensed Matter, 404, 422 (2009).
• “Characterization of the torsional piezoelectric-like response of tantalum trisulfide ssociated with charge-density-wave depinning”,  J. Nichols, D. Dominko, L. Ladino, J. Zhou, and J.W. Brill, Phys. Rev. B 79. 241110(R), 039903(E)  (2009). 
• “Dynamics of the hysteretic voltage-induced torsional strain in tantalum trisulfide”, J. Nichols, C. Sandamali Weerasooriya, and J.W. Brill, J. Physics:  Cond. Matt. 22, 334224 (2010).
• "Electro-optic measurement of carrier mobility in an organic thin-film transistor", E.G. Bittle, J.W. Brill and J.E. Anthony, Appl. Phys. Lett. 97, 013302 (2010).
• "Torque and temperature dependence of the hysteretic voltage-induced torsional strain in tantalum trisulfide", H. Zhang, J. Nichols, and J.W. Brill, Phys. Rev. B 84, 125134 (2011).
• "Electromechanical response of sliding charge-density waves: Voltage-induced torsional strain in tantalum trisulfide", J.W. Brill, H. Zhang, and J. Nichols, Physica B 407, 1737 (2012).