Postgraduate Spotlight

18 Jun 2026

The School of Physics would like to highlight the work of Postgraduate Student Seán McColgan.

“I feel very lucky to be able to work on exciting, cutting-edge physics in such a friendly and supportive environment. I’ve really enjoyed my time in UCC so far.”

My research focuses on an exciting class of material that undergoes a transition from one phase of matter to another at a “quantum critical point”, which occurs at absolute zero temperature. Unlike phase transitions in classical materials, the quantum critical point is driven by quantum fluctuations rather than by heat. These quantum fluctuations spread through the whole material and create a highly quantum-entangled state on a large scale. Although the transition happens at absolute zero, the effects of quantum criticality can be seen at finite temperatures throughout the phase diagram, often resulting in novel phases of matter with anomalous transport and thermodynamic properties.

My work aims to confirm and characterise the properties of a ferromagnetic quantum critical point through measurements of the temperature, pressure, and magnetic field dependence of the electrical resistivity, combined with theoretical predictions of key electronic properties. During my PhD, I will also be involved in the installation and development of apparatus for experiments at ultra-low temperatures and high magnetic fields in the new Microkelvin Laboratory in the Kane basement.

Seán is supervisered by Prof. Alix McCollam.