Home People Teaching Staff Yufan LI

Education:

• PhD in Physics, Fudan University, China (2013)
• BS in Physics, Fudan University, China (2007)

Position:

• 2021-present, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
• 2013-2021, Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Johns Hopkins University

Research Interest:

• Magnetic, spin and topological phenomena in quantum materials and their heterostructures
• Quantum phenomena in nanodevices and nanostructures
• Unconventional pairing states of superconductivity
• Emergent functions of thin films and interfaces

Selected Recent Publications:

• "Spin-triplet pairing state evidenced by half-quantum flux in a noncentrosymmetric superconductor", Xiaoying Xu, Yufan Li, C. L. Chien. Physical Review Letters 124, 167001 (2020).
• "Observation of half-quantum flux in the unconventional superconductor β-Bi₂Pd", Yufan Li, Xiaoying Xu, M.-H. Lee, M.-W. Chu, C. L. Chien. Science 366, 238–241 (2019).
• "Nontrivial nature and penetration depth of topological surface states in SmB₆ thin films", Tao Liu, Yufan Li, Lei Gu, Junjia Ding, Houchen Chang, P. A. Praveen Janantha, Boris Kalinikos, Valentyn Novosad, Axel Hoffmann, Ruqian Wu, C. L. Chien, Mingzhong Wu. Physical Review Letters 120, 207206 (2018).
• "Switching a perpendicular ferromagnetic layer by competing spin currents", Qinli Ma, Yufan Li, D. B. Gopman, Yu. P. Kabanov, R. D. Shull, C. L. Chien. Physical Review Letters 120, 117703 (2018).
• "Thin films of topological Kondo insulator candidate SmB₆: strong spin-orbit torque without exclusive surface conduction", Yufan Li, Qinli Ma, S. X. Huang, C. L. Chien. Science Advances 4, eaap8294 (2018).
• "Robust formation of skyrmions and topological Hall effect anomaly in epitaxial thin films of MnSi", Yufan Li, N. Kanazawa, X. Z. Yu, A. Tsukazaki, M. Kawasaki, M. Ichikawa, X. F. Jin, F. Kagawa, Y. Tokura. Physical Review Letters 110, 117202 (2013).

Patents:

• "Topological insulator-based high efficiency switching of magnetic units, methods and applications", Yufan Li, Qinli Ma, Chia-ling Chien. U.S. Patent No. 2020/0035910 A1.
• "Heavy metal multilayers for switching of magnetic unit via electrical current without magnetic field, method and applications", Qinli Ma, Yufan Li, Chia-ling Chien. U.S. Patent No. 9899071.
• "Skyrmion based universal memory operated by electric current", Jiadong Zang, Chia-Ling Chien, Yufan Li, Roger K. Lake, Gen Yin. U.S. Patent No. 9773540.

Press:

• Our work about half-integer flux quantization (Science 2019) was featured in Scientific American. "Strange Superconductor Sends Electrons Both Ways", Scientific American (2020).
• Our work on field-free spin-orbit torque switching (PRL 2018) was covered by C&EN. "Weird magnetic behavior could improve computer memory", Chemical & Engineering News (2018).