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 Physics at Virginia

Despina Louca

Despina Louca

Ph.D., 1997, Pennsylvania
Maxine S. and Jesse W. Beams Professor of Physics
Department Chair

Experimental Condensed Matter Physics

dl4f@Virginia.EDU
Office 325 JBL
924-6802

Research Interests

Professor Louca and her students explore the nature of phase transitions in a wide variety of condensed matter systems, from strongly correlated solids to amorphous metals. The group focuses on understanding how the underlying interactions involving the spin, charge and lattice degrees of freedom lead to emergent behaviors and distinct properties such as polaron formation, Jahn-Teller type distortions, spin and charge density waves, superconductivity and quantum spin liquid states. The most recent systems of interest include topological insulators and semimetals, spintronic antiferromagnets of the I-Mn-V class, transition metal dichalcogenides, disorder superconductors, layered semiconductors, charge density wave dichalcogenides etc. These systems have underlying macroscopic functionalities that can potentially lead to industrial applications. The bulk of this research is performed at national and international neutron and X-ray facilities. The Louca group is also involved in materials synthesis and characterization of bulk properties, performed at the University of Virginia.

Selected Publications

  1. “Helimagnetism in CrBr2 and CrIBr” John A. Schneeloch, Adam A. Aczel, and Despina Louca, Phys. Rev. B. 111, 054403 (2025). 
  2. “Sensitivity of electronic structure to crystal distortions in infinite-layered LaNiO2”, S. Rathnayaka, S. Yano, J.-B. Moree, K. Kawashima, J. Akimitsu, C. M. Brown, J. Neuefeind, and D. Louca, Phys. Rev. B 111, 014518 (2025).
  3. “Magnetic dynamics in NiTiO3 honeycomb antiferromagnet using neutron scattering”, Srimal Rathnayaka, Luke Daemen, Tao Hong, Songxue Chi, Stuart Calder, John A. Schneeloch, Yongqiang Cheng, Bing Li, and Despina Louca, Phys. Rev. B 112, 104426 (2025).
  4. “Disorder in the chalcogen layer in 1T-TaS2−2xSe2x”, S. S. Philip and D. Louca, Phys. Rev. B 109, 094118 (2024).
  5. “Antiferromagnetic-ferromagnetic homostructures with Dirac magnons in van der Waals magnet CrI3”, John A. Schneeloch, Luke Daemen, and Despina Louca, Phys. Rev. B. 109, 024409 (2024).
  6. “Gapless Dirac magnons and magnetic excitations in the topological insulator CoTiO3”, S. Rathnayaka, L. Daemen, J. A. Schneeloch, Y. Cheng, and D. Louca, Phys Rev B 109(17), 174432 (2024).
  7. “Role of stacking defects on the magnetic behavior of CrCl3”, John A. Schneeloch, Adam Aczel, and Despina Louca, Phys. Rev. B. 110, 144439 (2024).
  8. “Emergence of Layer Stacking Disorder in c-axis Confined MoTe2”, J. L. Hart, L. Bhatt, Y. Zhu, M.-G. Han, E. Bianco, S. Li, D. Hynek, J. A. Schneeloch, Y. Tao, D. Louca, P. Guo, Y. Zhu, F. Jornada, E. J. Reed, L. F. Kourkoutis, J. J. Cha, Nature Comm. 14, Article number: 4803 (2023).
  9. “Investigating the magnetoelastic properties in FeSn and Fe3Sn2 flat band metals”, Y. Tao, L. Daemen, Y. Cheng, J. C. Neuefeind, D. Louca, Phys. Rev. B 107 (17), 174407 (2023).
  10. “Local structure anomaly with the charge ordering transition of 1T−TaS2”, S. S. Philip, J. C. Neuefeind, M. B. Stone, D. Louca, Phys. Rev. B 107, 184109 (2023).

News Items

Despina Louca has been elected a Fellow of the Neutron Scattering Society of America (NSSA) in 2022.  Less than 1% of the NSSA membership is accorded this recognition every two years, ......More >
Professor Louca has been selected to receive a Distinguished Researcher Award by the University of Virginia Research Achievement Awards committee. The Distinguished Researcher ......More >
Despina Louca was quoted in Physics Today about the temporary closure of the NIST Center for Neutron Research (NCNR). From Physics Today: Louca says it ......More >
Despina Louca has been elected to a three-year term on the American Physical Society's Panel on Public Affairs (POPA). POPA is responsible for making recommendations ......More >
Prof. Louca is organizing a 2-day workshop in February 1-2, 2021, on Muon Spin Spectroscopy. The workshop will be virtual  given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Virtual Muon-2021 ......More >
Despina Louca’s group, and in particular graduate student Aaron Wegner and postdoctoral researcher Junjie Yang, has discovered a way to boost the magnetoresistance in the I-Mn-V class of ......More >
Researchers at UVa found a way through strain engineering to manipulate the electronic band structure, and induce large, reversible response of the magnetoresistive properties under high ......More >
Prof. Despina Louca has been elected to serve a four year term as President of the Neutron Scattering Society of America. See  ...More >
Dear Colleagues,   Peter Arnold and Despina Louca have been elected 2014 APS Fellows. Please join me to say “congratulations” to these two ......More >
Despina Louca, with her colleagues at UT Austin, received one of the three MIRT awards made by the National Science Foundation this year among high competition.The Materials Interdisciplinary ......More >

Honors

Anne Mayes Prize [2025]

Louca awarded the 2025 Anne Mayes Prize from the Neutron Scattering Society of America for sustained and inspiring leadership within the North American neutron scattering community, dedicated mentorship and outreach to next-generation neutron scientists, and research excellence particularly as it relates to understanding structure-property relationships in quantum and topological materials.

Fellow of the Neutron Scattering Society of America [2022]

For her leadership as NSSA President and her numerous contributions to the study of local structure of functional quantum materials using neutron scattering.

Distinguished Researcher Award [2021]

Awarded by the University of Virginia. The Distinguished Researcher Award recognizes University of Virginia faculty members for their excellence in research through significant discoveries and scholarship. It is intended for scholars who are making an impact in their field and on society, and are acknowledged as a leader in their field. 

President of the Neutron Scattering Society of America [2017-2020]
APS Fellow [2014]
For demonstration of the importance of the local atomic structure for elucidating the physical properties of complex oxides including the transition metal oxides through neutron scattering using the pair-density-function analysis.

Departmental Committees

Beitchman Summer Graduate Research Fellowship Committee (Chair)

Long Range Planning Committee (Chair)

Careers in Physics Seminar Committee (Chair)