Abstract

Light plays a dual role in material science, acting as a probe of the lattice and electronic structure, but also as a powerful tool to control and design material properties. 

Driving quantum materials far from equilibrium with tailored light fields can induce new states of matter, including metastable phases such as light-induced superconductivity or charge-density waves, with intriguing prospects for technology. Beyond their potential applications, such light-induced phenomena raise fundamental questions about coherence, correlation, and collective excitations in strongly interacting systems. 

Recent advances in ultrafast light and terahertz (THz) sources enable experimental access to nonequilibrium quantum materials, ranging from Floquet engineering of electronic band structures to ultrafast spin and charge dynamics. In parallel, theoretical many-body and ab initio approaches matured to the point where quantitative simulations of complex materials out of equilibrium are becoming possible. 

In this mini-colloquium, we will bring together theorists and experimentalists to explore ultrafast light-matter interactions, nonequilibrium dynamics, and nonthermal phases of matter. We aim to foster scientific exchange, highlight synergies, and discuss future research in and applications of nonequilibrium quantum materials.

Invited speakers

to be announced

Organizers

Name	Affiliation
Anna Galler	Institute of Theoretical and Computational Physics, TU Graz
Alba De las Heras Muñoz	Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter, Hamburg
Marcus Ossiander	Institute of Experimental Physics, TU Graz