About

Mesoscopic science applies to systems that lay the microworld of high energy and elementary particles and the macroworld of our everyday life. The theoretical and experimental understanding of mesoscopic systems, which is the focus of the Mesoscopic Theory Center, fuels applications in diverse fields: energy, technology, medicine and biology.

The atomic nucleus is a typical mesoscopic system, one that's measured on the scale of femtometers. (One femtometer is 10-15 meters.) Mesoscopic science applies on larger scales, as well, and is relevant to the complex interplay of atoms and molecules, atomic clusters, small metallic grains, quantum dots and quantum wires. The applied frontiers of mesoscopic physics include the nanoscience related to small solid-state devices, soft condensed matter and quantum optics. And the eventual success of quantum computers will depend on harnessing mesoscopic properties of specific systems.

The main physical problem in all such systems is the emergence of complexity and coherent collective effects from the interactions of elementary particles. Nuclear physics provides many examples of these diverse mesoscopic phenomena, including phase transitions, superfluidity and superconductivity, and quantum chaos. Just how these phenomena change between self-sustaining stable systems and those that are open to decay is related to mesoscopic science, as well. What's needed in studying these and other phenomena are models of a mesoscopic system, which is just what the rare isotopes studied theoretically and experimentally at National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory provide.

In the October 2004, we held a workshop entitled "Nuclei and Mesoscopic Physics." The enthusiasm and intellectual energy of the conference helped lead to the formation of the Mesoscopic Theory Center, which was established fall 2006 to create a platform for collaborations among nuclear and condensed matter physicists, chemists, mathematicians and scientists in related areas. The center will host lectures and seminars by experts in the subfields of mesoscopic science, courses for students, workshops on specialized topics and summer schools.

For more information about the Mesoscopic Theory Center or the emerging science that's the focus of the center's activities, feel free to contact me. Thanks for your interest.

-Vladimir Zelevinsky (zelevinsky at nscl.msu.edu), MSU professor of theoretical nuclear physics, March 2008

Additional Resources:

A description of how mesoscopic science fits into the contemporary physics of nuclei is included in Chapter 2 (PDF, 5.8 MB) of NSCL's 2006 whitepaper, "Isotope Science Facility at Michigan State University."

NSCL Director Konrad Gelbke describes how rare isotope research is tied to mesoscopic science and astrophysics in a December 2006 Viewpoint for the CERN Courier.