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Martin Nikolo, Ph.D.

Professor
Physics

Office Hours

M,W: 2-2:30 p.m.

Education

B.S. in Physics, University of Virginia, 1984
M.E. in Engineering Physics, University of Virginia, 1985
M.S. in Physics, University of Colorado-Boulder, 1987
Ph.D. Physics, University of Colorado-Boulder, 1991

Research Interests

  • Superconductivity
  • Magnetic measurements

Publications and Media Placements

1. Nikolo, M. and Goldfarb, R.B., “Flux creep and activation energies at the grain boundaries of Y-Ba-Cu-O superconductors,” Phys. Rev. B 39, 6615 (1989).

2. Nikolo M. and Goldfarb, R.B., “Flux creep activation energies in Y-Ba-Cu-O superconductors,” Proc. of the 6th Japan-US Workshop on High-Field Superconducting Materials and Standard Procedures for High-Field Superconducting Materials Testing, Boulder, Colorado, Feb. 22-24, 1989, 75, ed. K.Tachikawa, published by U. S. Department of Energy (1989).

3. Nikolo, M., “Density and texture dependence of grain coupling in sintered Y-Ba-Cu-O superconductors,” Physics and Materials Science of High Temperature Superconductors, Edited by R. Kossowsky, NATO ASI Series, Kluver Academic Publishers, Dordrecht/Boston/London, 711 (1990).

4. Nikolo, M., “Pinning mechanisms and pinning sites in high-Tc superconductors-a review,” Appl. Phys. Comm. 10, 1&2, 143 (1990).

5. Muller, K.H., Nikolo, M., and Driver, R., “Flux pinning at grain boundaries in Bi-(Pb)-Sr-Ca-Cu-O ceramic superconductors,” Phys. Rev. B 43, 7976 (1991).

6. Muller, K.H., Nikolo, M., Savvides, N., and Driver, R., “Ac susceptibility of high-temperature ceramic superconductors: critical state and creep at grain boundaries and in grains,” Advances in Superconductivity III, Proceed. of the 3rd International Symposium on Superconductivity (ISS’90), November 6-9, 1990, Sendai, Japan, Springer-Verlag Tokyo 1991.

7. Nikolo, M., Kiel, W., Duan, H.M., and Hermann, A.M., “Flux creep activation energies in Tl-Ba-Ca-Cu-O crystals,” Phys. Rev. B 45, 5641 (1992).

8. Nikolo, M. and Hermann, A.M., “High-field ac susceptometer design for single crystal measurements,” Susceptibility of Superconductors and Other Spin Systems, edited by R. A. Hein, Plenum Press, New York, 553 (1992).

9. Missey, M.J. and Nikolo, M., “Ac susceptibility of high-Tc superconductors as a function of temperature, ac magnetic field and its frequency”, Proceedings of the 3rd Undergraduate Science Symposium at Argonne National Lab, Chicago, Nov. (1992).

10. Nikolo, M., “Flux dynamics in high temperature superconductors,” Superconductor Science and Technology 6, 618 (1993).

11. Brown, S.E., Nikolo, M., and Wild, A., “Nonlinear diffusion of magnetic flux into high-Tc superconductors”, Proceedings of the 4th Undergraduate Science Symposium at Argonne National Lab, Chicago, Nov. (1993).

12. Nikolo, M., Stacey, L.M., and Missey, M.J., “Critical state model and ac susceptibility of high temperature superconductors,” Physica B 194-196, 1875 (1994).

13. Nikolo, M., “Intergranular activation energies in Y1Ba2Cu3O7 bulk superconductors,” Physica B 194-196, 2129 (1994).

14. Nikolo, M., Stacey, L.M., and Missey, M.J., “Frequency and magnetic field dependence of the ac susceptibility peak in Y1Ba2Cu3O7,” Appl. Physics Comm. 13, #1, 1 (1994).

15. Nikolo, M., “Flux creep intergranular activation energies in Y1Ba2Cu3O7 bulk superconductors ” Appl. Physics Comm. 13 #2, 79 (1994).

16. Nikolo, M. and Missey, M.J., “Frequency dependent flux dynamics: Flux creep hopping rate via ac susceptibility,” Physica C, 235-240, 2899 (1994).

17. Nikolo, M. and Missey, M.J., “Frequency dependent flux dynamics: Flux creep and ac susceptibility,” Fourth Nordic Symposium on Superconductivity, May 25-28, 1994, Varberg, Sweden, 59, published by Chalmers University of Technology, and Goteborg University (1994).

18. Nikolo, M., “Superconductivity: A guide to ac susceptibility measurements and ac susceptibility design,” American. J. Physics, 63, 57 (1995).

19. Nikolo, M. and Missey, M. J., Flux dynamics at the grain boundaries of bulk Y-Ba-Cu-O Superconductors, Proceedings of 1994 Topical International Cryogenic Materials Conference on the Critical State in Superconductors. Oct. 24-26, Honolulu, Hawaii, ed. K. Tachikawa, World Scientific Publishing Company, Singapore, 169-172 (1995).

20. Nikolo, M., Stacey, L.M. and Missey, M.J., “Induced voltage magnetization waveforms and the spectral response at the grain boundaries of YBCO superconductors and the Critical State Model”, Solid State Comm., 94, 997 (1995).

21. M. Nikolo, X. Shi, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Magneto-transport properties, thermally activated flux flow and activation energies in Ba(Fe0.95 Ni0.05)2As2 and Ba(Fe0.94 Ni0.06)2As2 superconductors”, Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism, Vol. 27, Issue 9, 1983-1990 (2014).

22. M. Nikolo, X. Shi, E.S. Choi, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Magneto-transport properties and thermally activated flux flow in Ba(Fe0.91Co0.09)2As2 superconductor”, Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism, Vol. 27, Issue 10, 2231-2239 (2014).

23. M. Nikolo, X. Shi, E.S. Choi, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Flux dynamics, ac losses, and activation energies in (Ba0.6 K0.4)Fe2As2 bulk superconductor”, Journal of Low Temperature Physics, Vol. 178, 188-199 (2015).

24. M. Nikolo, X. Shi, E.S. Choi, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Inter and intra granular flux pinning properties in Ba(Fe0.91Co0.09)2As2 superconductor in ac and dc magnetic fields”, Journal of Low Temperature Physics, Vol. 178, 345-354 (2015).

25. M. Nikolo, X. Shi, E.S. Choi, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Inter- and intra-granular flux pinning in Ba(Fe0.91Co0.09)2As2 superconductors”, Physics Procedia, Volume/Issue 67C, pp. 987-992 (2015).

26. M. Nikolo, X. Shi, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Flux pinning and activation energies in Ba(Fe0.95 Ni0.05)2As2 and Ba(Fe0.94 Ni0.06)2As2 bulk superconductors”, Physics Procedia, Volume/Issue 67C, pp. 993-998 (2015).

27. M. Nikolo, X. Shi, E.S. Choi, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Frequency dependent flux dynamics and activation energies in pnictide bulk (Ba0.56K0.44)Fe2As2 superconductor”, Physics Procedia, Volume/Issue 67C, pp. 939-944 (2015).

28. M. Nikolo, J. Singleton, V. S. Zapf, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Irreversibility line measurement and vortex dynamics in high magnetic fields in Ni- and Co-doped iron pnictide bulk superconductors”, Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism, Vol. 29, Issue 11, pp 2735-2742 (2016).

29. M. Nikolo, V. S. Zapf, J. Singleton, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Vortex flux dynamics and harmonic ac magnetic response of Ba(Fe0.94 Ni0.06)2As2 bulk superconductor”, Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism Vol. 29, Issue 11, pp 2745-2752 (2016).

30. M. Nikolo, J. Singleton, D. Solenov, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Upper critical and irreversibility fields in Ba(Fe0.95Ni0.05)2As2 and Ba(Fe0.94Ni0.06)2As2 pnictide bulk superconductors”, Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism, Vol. 30, Issue 2, 331-341 (2017).

31. M. Nikolo, J. Singleton, D. Solenov, J. Jiang, J.D. Weiss, E.E. Hellstrom, “Upper critical and irreversibility fields in Ba(Fe0.92Co0.08)2As2 and Ba(Fe0.91Co0.09)2As2 pnictide bulk superconductors”, Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism, Vol. 30, 561-568 (2017).

Honors and Awards

  • 2014: $25,000 President’s Research Fund Award.
  • 1994: Saint Louis University Young Researcher Award. This is a university-wide award presented by the President of Saint Louis University.
  • Mark Missey and Martin Nikolo, 1992 student/faculty winner of the prestigious $2500 Council on Undergraduate Research Fellowship, one of 15 winners out of 160 student/faculty proposals from around the country.
  • Stephen Braun and Martin Nikolo, 1995 student/faculty winner of the prestigious $2500 Council on Undergraduate Research Fellowship, one of 15 winners out of over 200 student/faculty proposals from around the country.
  • Echols Scholar at the University of Virginia.
  • Referee for a number of scientific journals such as for Physica C, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity, Superconductor Science and Technology, and American Journal of Physics.
  • Invited talks at Oxford University and Imperial College in United Kingdom.
  • Several invitations to the Gordon Research Conferences. The primary criteria for attendance at a Conference are scientific accomplishment. Attendance is limited to about 100 participants from around the world. This is an expression of professional recognition by internationally renowned scientists.
  • 475 worldwide citations of research publications reported by Google Scholar.
  • Selected to chair a superconductivity session Q48 at the American Physical Society national meeting in Denver, Colorado, on March, 2014.
  • Referee for a number of scientific journals such as for Physica C, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity, Superconductor Science and Technology, and American Journal of Physics.
  • Invited talks at Oxford University and Imperial College in United Kingdom.
  • Several invitations to the prestigious Gordon Research Conferences. The primary criteria for attendance at the Conference are scientific accomplishment and merit. Attendance is limited to about 100 participants from around the world. This is an expression of professional recognition by internationally renowned scientists.
  • Several US universities (Harvard, Rice, University of Florida, etc.) use one of Nikolo's papers describing the theory and application of ac susceptibility measurements (American J. Physics, 63, 57 (1995)), as a key reference in their advanced undergraduate labs. Some professors described it as “the clearest account of the measurement method available in the literature”. Many researchers have cited it as a key reference in their ac susceptometer design. Nikolo is considered an authority on ac susceptibility measurements. Googling “M. Nikolo, ac susceptibility” gives over 1200 results.

Community Work and Service

  • 1993-2017: Physics coordinator for the College Credit Program 1818. Nikolo visits 10-20 high schools each yea, develops assessment materials (including tests) for 1818 Program. 
  • 1995-1996: Faculty Council of the College of Arts and Sciences
  • 1997-1998: Curriculum Committee of the College of Arts and Sciences
  • 1999-2000: Chairman of the Faculty Affairs Committee, Parks College
  • 2000-2001: Chairman of the Faculty Affairs Committee, Parks College. Nikolo organized and prepared a review of teaching loads of all departments in Parks College.
  • 2001-2002: Chairman of the Faculty Affairs Committee, Parks College. Nikolo administered applications for sabbatical leaves and subsequent sabbatical reports.
  • In 2003, during the spring semester, Nikolo gave about 20 physics lectures to gifted children (IQ above 150) at Sperreng Middle School in the Lindberg school district.