Menka Jain

Professor

Physics and Institute of Materials Science

Research Interests

Current research interests of Jain’s group are in the study of various interesting functional and quantum metal-oxide materials (such as dielectric, ferroelectric, ferromagnetic, multiferroic, magnetoelectric, thermoelectric) and non-oxide single crystals. Applications of these materials in a variety of devices require good understanding of the material and fine tuning of their specific properties required for a particular application. Generally, processing conditions, strain, composition, dopants, structure, microstructure, etc. affect the physical properties of these materials. Artificially engineered multilayered, nanocomposite, heterostructured films, and single crystals of such materials are of great interest due to their novel properties. Other studies include the role of defects, grain boundaries, dopants, artificial multilayers, etc. on the electronic, magnetic and magnetotransport properties of the manganites, double perovskites, and cobaltites.

The group has a set up for synthesizing various metal-oxide thin films (single phase, composite, or heterostructures), and powders using chemical solution deposition technique. Thin films are also grown using pulsed laser deposition technique available in UConn. In order to characterize these materials, we employ a wide range of techniques available at UConn (Physics Department and IMS) and in other facilities available in National Labs and other Universities. Various state-of-the-art techniques are available at UConn, such as, X-ray diffraction to examine the crystal structure; SQUID and VSM (attached with PPMS) to examine magnetic behavior (AC/DC susceptibility); AFM/SEM/TEM to examine the microstructure at the surface and interfaces; and electronic conductivity of samples with temperature (1.9-400K) and with applied magnetic field (up to 9T); AC transport measurements; and Hall coefficients measurements. We utilize clean room facility equipped with UV photolithography and sputter/evaporator systems to fabricate devices for the dielectric, ferroelectric, and electrical measurements.

CV

Education

• Ph.D., Chemical Physics, University of Puerto Rico, 2004
• M.S., Physics, Shri Sahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur, India, 1998
• B.S., Physics and Mathematics, Shri Sahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur, India, 1996

Experience

• 2023-present: Professor, Department of Physics Institute of Materials Science, University of Connecticut
• 2014-2023: Associate Professor, Department of Physics Institute of Materials Science, University of Connecticut
• 2008-2014: Assistant Professor, Department of Physics Institute of Materials Science, University of Connecticut
• 2005-2008: Director’s funded Postdoctoral Fellow, Materials Physics and Applications Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, NM
• 1998-1999: Project associate, Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur