Alexandra-Daria Dumitriu-Iovanescu

Research Interests

My research focuses on the interplay between topology, geometry, and correlations in two-dimensional materials, examining how electron-electron interactions affect charge and heat transport in systems with topological features. Typically, currents follow an applied electric field or temperature gradient, but in systems with an applied magnetic field or nontrivial band topology, transverse flows also occur. I study Dirac materials like graphene (with broken inversion and time-reversal symmetry) and Chern insulators, which showcase exotic properties due to their two-dimensional nature, relativistic-like dispersion, and extreme tunability. Using many-body quantum-field-theory techniques, I explore the impact of electron-electron interactions in these systems.

Publications

• Feng Liu, A. Daria Dumitriu-I., Alessandro Principi
  "Broken Lorentz symmetry and violation of the Wiedemann-Franz law in topological insulators"
  ArXiv preprint: 2411.13649 (2024)
• Feng Liu, A. Daria Dumitriu-I., Alessandro Principi
  "No bulk thermal currents in massive Dirac fermions"
  Physical Review B 110, L081404 (2024)
• A. Daria Dumitriu-I., Darius-A. Deaconu, Alexander E. Kazantsev, and Alessandro Principi
  "First-order effect of electron-electron interactions on the anomalous Hall conductivity of massive Dirac fermions"
  Physical Review B 109, 165429 (2024)

Conferences and Schools

• Global Physics Summit - Anaheim, California, 16-21 March 2025
• CMD31 - Braga, Portugal, 1-6 September 2024
• Topological Quantum Matter Fall School - Leipzig, Germany, 27-29 September 2023
• Topological Matter School - San Sebastian, Spain, 20-25 August 2023
• Graphene2023 - Manchester, England, 27-30 June 2023
• Conference and Advanced School on Low-Dimensional Quantum Systems - Santiago, Chile, 13-24 March 2023
• CMD29 - Manchester, England, 21-26 August 2022
• Physics by the Lake Summer School - Stirling, Scotland, 1-12 August 2022

Awards & Certifications

• Associate Fellow (AFHEA) - awarded by Advance HE (formerly the Higher Education Academy), April 2025
• Best Poster Prize - awarded at the Annual PGR Conference, Department of Physics, University of Manchester, September 2024
• Best Talk Prize - awarded at the Annual CDT Conference, Graphene NowNano CDT, Manchester, June 2024
• Hatfield-Heginbottom Scholarship - awarded to the best performing student in the 3rd year, University of Manchester, August 2020

Teaching Assistant

• Dynamics - First-year weekly workshop (September-December 2021, 2022, 2023)
• Mathematics 1 - First-year weekly workshop (September-December 2021, 2022, 2023)
• General Laboratory - First-year laboratory experiment (September-May 2022, 2023)

CDT Projects

• CDT Laboratory Project 1 - Graphene/2D Materials Based Field-Effect Devices and Optoelectronics
• CDT Laboratory Project 2 - Low Temperature Electronic Measurements with Device Fabrication
• CDT Enquiry-based Learning Project 1 - Topological Properties of Electronic Bands in 2D Materials
• CDT Enquiry-based Learning Project 2 - 2D Optical Modulators

Undergraduate Projects

• MPhys Project - Second Semester
• MPhys Project - First Semester
• Theory Computing Project (Second Year) - Numerical Solutions to the One-dimensional Schrodinger's Equation
• Vacation Essay (Second Year) - The One-Dimensional Transverse Ising Model
• Vacation Essay (First Year) - Quantum Cryptography and The BB84 Protocol

Hobbies

I have a variety of hobbies and interests that keep me busy and entertained. I’m really into sports, especially winter ones like skiing and ice skating, but hiking and trekking are my absolute favorites. I also enjoy playing squash and indoor bouldering. In my free time, I love solving puzzles, playing strategy board games, attending live musicals, and reading dystopian novels. I also have quite a large collection of Hard Rock Cafe T-shirts. I'm passionate about 3D printing, and I really enjoy participating in outreach activities.

Contact

alexandra-daria.dumitriu-iovanescu@manchester.ac.uk
LinkedIn Profile
Schuster Building, Office 7.27