JOŽEF STEFAN INSTITUTE
Department of Complex Matter
Jamova cesta 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

Dynamics of Quantum matter

We explore non-equilibrium many-body dynamics in quantum systems that experience symmetry-breaking, topological, or jamming transitions. These systems encompass superconductors, charge-density wave, and magnetic materials.

Experimental Soft Matter Physics

The research is conducted within the “Light and Matter” research program. The interaction of light with matter is one of the most important fields of physics and optical processes are indispensable in many branches of modern industry.

For students

Are you searching for an exciting and innovative topic for your seminar, summer work, or perhaps for a Masters or Diploma research? Check available topics an start your research journey with us.

Job opportunities

We are searching for talents! If you are searching for PhD position, if you are a motivated postdoc or senior researchers, check open positions and proposed research topics.

Our partners

We strongly believe that collaboration helps provide opportunities. We collaborate with other research institutions, businesses and industry. Learn here about our associates and how to become our partner.

April 11, 2024
Dr. Dragan Mihailović, a leading researcher in the field of quantum systems at the Jožef Stefan Institute (IJS), has successfully won the third project of the European Research Council (ERC), HIMMS (High-Resolution ...
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News

April 19, 2024

The recently obtained ERC  by Prof. dr. Dragan Mihailović was the main podcast topic on the Prvi program on RTV Slovenia. Link: https://prvi.rtvslo.si/podkast/radiosfera/173251633/175038436  

April 11, 2024

Dr. Dragan Mihailović, a leading researcher in the field of quantum systems at the Jožef Stefan Institute (IJS), has successfully won the third project of the European Research Council (ERC), HIMMS (High-Resolution Imaging of Metastable States). The project, worth 2.5 million euros and designed for a five-year duration, focuses on the investigation of hidden metastable states in quantum materials. The…

March 27, 2024

The article “Crystallization of polarons through charge and spin ordering transitions in 1T-TaS2” published in Nature Communications was highlighted by the collaborative research partners at Brookhaven National Laboratory who provided a comprehensive insight into the research which underlyed the article. The research team uncovered a previously unseen electronic state within 1T-TaS2 through advanced techniques and interdisciplinary collaboration, elucidating its quantum…

March 25, 2024

The Jožef Stefan Institute (JSI) organizes the Jožef Stefan Days every year, and this year they were held for the 32nd time. The highlight of the week-long event was the Open Day, which gave the public an insight into the work of the JSI and invited them to visit its premises. The event included a varied program of presentations and…

March 1, 2024
Dr Vaskivskyi shares his passion for the optical laboratory, where laser beams and screwdrivers combine to unlock the secrets of materials on the femtosecond timescale. Read more in an interview published in the 29.2.2024 edition of Delo on link: https://www.delo.si/novice/znanoteh/ze-kot-otrok-je-razstavil-vse-kar-se-je-razstaviti-dalo/  
February 6, 2024
The absence of efficient light modulators for extreme ultraviolet - EUV and X-ray photons considerably limits their real-life application, particularly when even slight complexity of the beam patterns is required. In the new article, we report on a novel approach to reversible imprinting of a holographic mask in an electronic Wigner crystal material with a sub-90-nm feature size. The structure…
December 27, 2023
The paper “Spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking and lane formation in ferromagnetic ferrofluids" was recently published in the journal Small authored by the researchers from the Department of Complex Matter Mojca Vilfan, Borut Lampret, Žiga Gregorin, Luka Cmok, Patricija Hribar Boštjančič and Alenka Mertelj, in collaboration with Darja Lisjak from the Department of Synthesis of Materials, Andrej Vilfan from the Department…
December 11, 2023
Metastability of quantum states is rare and still poorly understood posing a significant exprimental and theoretical challenge. In a paper just published in Nature Communications by Anže Mraz and co‑workers from the group of Dragan Mihailovic from the Jožef Stefan Institute in collaboration with with the Electrotechnical Faculty at the University of Ljubljana succeeded in visualising the microscopic dynamics of…
November 24, 2023

Active control of quantum materials is highly desirable for a wide range of applications. Metastable hidden states, such as the one discovered a few years ago by researchers at the Department of complex matter at the Jožef Stefan Institute, offer completely new functionalities. However, the underlying mechanisms that lead to hidden states remains a largely open scientific topic. In a…

November 3, 2023

Physicists from the Jožef Stefan Institute and Brookhaven National Laboratory (USA) describe an experiment, which for the first time reports the existence of individual polarons at very high temperatures in a crystal of TaS₂. They are able to detect the displacements of ions surrounding individual electrons as they move around in the crystal at very high temperatures on ultrashort timescales…

October 18, 2023
The macroscopic properties of quantum materials arise from microscopic quantum phenomena and cannot be understood solely through classical physics and chemistry. Sometimes, they behave entirely counter to intuition. In an article recently published in the journal Nature, a group of authors from Italy, the IJS (Jožef Stefan Institute), and Germany revealed an unusual quantum effect, where the properties of a…
May 25, 2023

The paper »Polarization patterning in ferroelectric nematic liquids via flexoelectric coupling« has been published in Nature Communications, by the members of the Department of Complex Matter at the Jožef Stefan Institute and Faculty of Mathematics and Physics at University of Ljubljana Nerea Sebastián, Matija Lovšin, Natan Osterman, Irena Drevenšek Olenik in Alenka Mertelj, together with researchers from Ghent University (Belgium),…

January 26, 2023

A team from University College London in Great Britain and dr. Gašper Kokot from the Complex matter department at „Jožef Stefan“ Institute have published an article titled „Fabrication of High-Aspect Ratio Nanogratings for Phase-Based X-Ray Imaging“ in Advanced Functional Materials. Diffractive optical elements such as periodic gratings are fundamental devices in X-ray imaging – a technique that medical, material science,…