GENERAL SEMINAR: Distinguished University Professor Hari Srikanth, Department of Physics, University of South Florida, Tampa FL, USA
ABOUT PROF. Srikanth
Hari Srikanth is a Distinguished University Professor at the University of South Florida. He received his Ph.D. in experimental condensed matter physics from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and has been at USF since 2000 where he leads the Functional Materials Laboratory. He is also the Director of Florida Institute of Emergent Low-Dimensional Quantum Materials (FIELD-QM). Hari’s research spans a wide range of topics like quantum materials, magnetic materials and nanoscience. Hari has over 320 journal publications (with 12,700+ citations and an h-index of 65) and has given over 225 invited talks around the world. In 2019, he was an IEEE Magnetics Society Distinguished Lecturer. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, Fellow of the Institute of Physics and a Senior Member of IEEE. He currently serves as an Associate Editor for Physical Review B. Hari has been closely involved with the MMM and INTERMAG conferences for over 20 years serving as Publication Editor, Publication Chair and on program committees. His is the Special Events Chair for the MMM 2025 and also serves on the IEEE Magnetics Society AdCom. Hari is a recipient of an Alexander von Humboldt Research Award and a Fulbright Scholar Award and holds visiting professorships at University of Duisburg Essen in Germany, IIT Bombay and IISc Bangalore in India.
ABOUT RESEARCH
Turning on the heat with spins and their transport across interfaces in heterostructures
Hari Srikanth
Distinguished University Professor
Department of Physics, University of South Florida, Tampa FL, USA
Spin-heat coupling lies at the heart of both fundamental condensed matter physics and a broad range of thermoelectric and thermomagnetic applications. Can we harness localized heating via magnetic nanoparticles—so-called “super spins”? How can thermal gradients be used to control spin transport? In this talk, I will address these compelling questions through insights from our research across a variety of magnetic systems, including nanostructures, thin-film heterostructures, and emerging quantum materials.
Our investigations span a diverse set of low dimensional systems: anisotropic nanoparticles, compensated ferrimagnets, spin gapless semiconductors, and 2D material interfaces with ferrites and garnets. A central focus is the precise determination of interfacial magnetic anisotropy in systems ranging from bulk samples to nanoparticle assemblies and thin films. Complementing this, we quantitatively analyze thermally generated spin currents to unravel the mechanisms governing spin-heat interactions.
To probe these phenomena, we employ a suite of complementary experimental techniques including magnetometry, RF transverse susceptibility, anomalous Nernst effect (ANE), spin Seebeck effect (SSE), and ferromagnetic resonance spin pumping (FMR-SP). These tools allow us to explore spin dynamics, spin caloritronics, and interfacial thermal spin transport with high precision.
I will also present highlights from our recent work: tunable magnetism in core-shell nanoparticles; the role of magnetic anisotropy in modulating SSE and ANE; universal SSE scaling in compensated ferrimagnets; estimation of magnon propagation lengths; and evidence of intrinsic Berry curvature in quaternary Weyl semimetal Heusler alloys.