Strain tuning of quantum materials

In this talk I will discuss the development of novel methods of applying uniaxialpressure to single crystals of quantum materials. Much of our work so far hasbeen on ruthenates, but I will also mention projects on other materials. I willshow that it is now possible to strain single crystals, reversibly, to change latticeparameters by at least 1%, and that this provides a ‘tuning energy scale’equivalent to the Zeeman energy of magnetic fields of well over 1000T. Uniaxial techniques are particularly suited to controlled tuning throughLifshitz transitions, and are also a useful complement to epitaxial strain in thenfilms, which is usually biaxial.