Magnetic materials have completely changed how we can access and make use of information during the last century. Digital information is stored in hard-drives in magnetic domains, where the north and south poles represent binary "one" and "zero". How fast data can be recorded is limited to the rate at which the poles of these domains can be reversed. Recent advances using laser pulses as short as a millionth billionth of a second (or femtosecond) have made it possible to overcome this limitation by switching magnetic domains 1000 times faster than what current technology can achieve. Ultrafast magnetism therefore has the potential to drastically increase the rate of writing information to memories by orders of magnitude and is one of the frontiers in current magnetic research. A continued development of new magnetic materials and new ways of controlling them will ensure that we can make the most of large data sets, which in turn will improve many aspects of our lives such as health care, government, logistics and will reduce global energy consumption. Another development, but hitherto unexplored in the context of ultrafast magnetism, is the study of molecular magnets. These will overcome the problems with reducing the size of data bits in hard drives to that of a few atoms, where the materials currently used have reached their size limit. Besides from reducing the size, molecular magnets also show another advantage for ultrafast magnetism. It has recently been shown that magnetic materials with localised magnetic moments are promising for achieving fast magnetisation reversal. These systems can be switched much faster in a process that generates less heat. Since the magnetic ordering of molecular magnets are from localised magnetic moments, these systems are very promising because their chemical flexibility makes it is possible to tune the interaction between the localised moments, and more importantly, their response to light perturbation. This will allow us to develop nanomaterials that can be switched using ultrashort laser pulses. In this proposal, we will look at a series of model compounds, where it is possible to systematically change the elemental composition and stoichiometry of the materials to tune their magnetic and optical properties. In particular, the project will be split into two work packages (WPs): spin-flips in Prussian Blue Analogues (WP1) and dynamics of photomagnets (WP2). In WP1, Prussian blue analogues (PBAs) will be studied. It is known that very fast spin-flips can happen in these materials after light excitation. We have recently applied specialised methods to directly observe the spin-flip on a femtosecond timescale. We will extend these methods to a range of PBAs to increase our understanding of how the interaction between the magnetic moments govern the dynamics after the spin-flip on the localised sites. In WP2, we will build on this knowledge and study a similar system based on Fe and Nb. After light excitation, the initially diamagnetic (or "non-magnetic") Fe(II) centres are switched, in a similar process to what was described earlier, but in this case, the spin-excited state is trapped after photoexcitation. This leads to a magnetic interaction between paramagnetic Nb centres and eventually a macroscopic magnetic ordering takes place. It is not known how fast the magnetic ordering process takes place, however, our methods can measure this with unprecedented time resolution. This will allow us to understand the mechanisms for the magnetic switching process, which is necessary for optimising the process to incorporate both the materials and techniques in a future ultrafast and ultradense magneto-optical data storage devices. EPSRC Reference: EP/S018824/1

Changes over time in population size arise due to changes in individuals (e.g. via survival or reproduction). Similarly, evolution via natural selection requires differences between individuals, under-pinned by heritable differences. The variation between individuals in their life-history phenotype (the way they grow, mature, reproduce and die) is thus key both to population changes and evolutionary changes. Traditionally, individual variation has been thought to arise because of genetic and environmental differences. Increasingly, we are recognising there is a third cause: past environmental conditions being passed across generations via paternal effects. The most common example of which are maternal influences on offspring condition. If my mother had a lot of food when she was pregnant, I am more likely to have grown in the womb and be born a large and healthy baby. As a result, I am likely to live a long time. Some types of maternal effect are not mediated by nutrition, but by switching on or off genes. Such gene silencing or activation (an 'epigenetic effect') can last several generations. By studying individuals and their life-histories (patterns of growth, maturity, health, survival, longevity) - whether in humans, other mammals, birds, fish, lizards or invertebrates - we are increasingly realising that parental effects are important in determining many aspects of an individual's life. Parental effects can arise through nutrition or epigenetics, and arise through the male or female line. Many studies have been observational (noting patterns and trying to explain them) and so little systematic experimentation has been undertaken. There remain many unanswered questions about the overall importance for parental effects in ecology. How much variation do parental effects create? Over what timescale: can they be outgrown or reversed? How do maternal and paternal effects interact? Do epigenetic effects act differently from nutritional effects? How much do they influence population dynamics by creating variation between individuals? In this grant we first explore the conditions leading to parental effects - by varying male and female age and condition and then looking across the offspring life history from start to finish. Second, we investigate whether the effects arise due to genetics (offspring have different combinations of genes to their parents), nutrition (by looking at the amount of yolk and its chemical composition) and epigenetics (which genes are switched on or off). Third, we build a model to ask the question why did the observed parental effects evolve. Finally, we create experimental populations of hundreds of individuals to see how parental effects created variability between individuals and how much this creates variation in population size and structure. The experiments are conducted using an experimental 'model' animal: a soil mite. This has a fast generation time and a small size, allowing experiments on both individuals and populations.

ICE is an interdisciplinary network which examines internationalist ideologies and processes of cultural exchange at a crucial historical moment. The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were characterised by rising nationalism, imperialism and war. But they were also marked by movements for international cooperation, a developing international infrastructure, and experiments in transnational ways of living. The arts were central to this dialogue between nationalism and internationalism. Artists were expected to play their part in the building of national traditions, but their lives and practices were often cosmopolitan. Yet, despite the vigour of internationalist thinking, historical enquiry in the arts has been largely preoccupied with national traditions. ICE challenges that emphasis. It builds on recent initiatives by ICE convenors and others (conferences, publications, collaborations, exhibitions) to deliver a sustained and collective discussion about the role of arts-based disciplines in the expanding field of transnational history. The thematic structuring of our project proposes a constructive alternative to the model of national schools, making room for a radical reassessment of cultural canons, chronologies, movements, and artists' lives. There are three strands to our enquiry: 'Sites of Internationalism', 'World Citizens' and 'Language and Translation'. They examine the ways in which artists at the fin de siècle reimagined society, developing their own infrastructures and modes of communication in order to transcend national borders. The crossing of boundaries is fundamental to the project in several ways: the network is interdisciplinary, comparing a range of art forms; it involves collaboration between different universities in the UK and overseas, and between universities and research-active museums; its subject-matter is international; and it promotes the application of new research to teaching. The network will operate through a series of day workshops, culminating in a two-day plenary conference. These events will promote the development of a research community, supported by a well-maintained website and mailing list. Selected proceedings will be published as part of a dedicated book series under contract with Peter Lang. Museums and galleries, which in recent years have pioneered cross-cultural approaches to the History of Art, are closely involved with the project. We aim to generate ideas for cross-cultural exhibitions through the involvement of our partner at Tate Britain and other senior curators. The aims of the project are long-term, extending well beyond the two-year period of the networking award. To this end, we will seek funding towards a larger collaborative project. The network will deliver widespread benefits to academics, the public sector and the wider public. The project is international, both in concept and participants. It enables a selected group of leading scholars to collaborate, and to engage in sustained debate with colleagues from different countries, disciplines and types of institution. Our focus on internationalism at the 'long fin de siècle' (1870-1920) promises to transform understanding of an era which was crucial to the development of globalisation. It therefore contributes to a debate which goes beyond the concerns of cultural history in the period, towards a pressing contemporary problem. Policy makers and international organisations would benefit from a better understanding of the origins of cultural internationalism, as would interested members of the general public, and contemporary artists operating in an increasingly diasporic art world. ICE will initiate new readings of art in the context of internationalism and its variants (cosmopolitanism, transnationalism, globalism). In the process, it will contribute to larger projects of public dissemination (eg. exhibitions) which enhance wider cultural well-being.

The core aim of this proposal is to implement a novel technique to assess the connectivity in the human brain by developing optically pumped magnetometers (OPMs) that can be combined with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). This allows us to assess brain connectivity by stimulating one region and measuring the response in another region. The approach holds the promise of providing capabilities needed for understanding the brain as a network and to investigate brain connectivity in cognition and disorders. Currently there is strong enthusiasm for OPMs. This new type of sensor has the potential of revolutionizing human electrophysiology. In particular OPMs allow us to measure small magnetic fields from neuronal currents in the brain, which so far is usually done using conventional SQUID-based magnetoencephalography (MEG). The disadvantages of conventional MEG are that 1) the sensors rely on cooling by liquid Helium which is highly expensive and 2) the sensors cannot work with brain stimulation. OPMs solve both concerns but need to be further developed to be integrated with brain stimulation. Brain stimulation using TMS is used to activate a given brain region by delivering a brief but strong magnetic pulse. The technique can also be used to stimulate one brain region and measure the response in connected regions. This has recently been attempted by combining TMS with electroencephalography (EEG); however, the resulting signals are spatially blurred and therefore difficult to interpret. Combining TMS with OPMs holds the promise of better identifying the regions responding to a specific perturbation. As such it will allow us to measure connectivity in the brain and quantify how this connectivity is modulated in a task specific manner. Furthermore, the technique can be used to assess connectivity changes associated with brain injuries and neurological disorders. Specifically, we will develop a new type of OPMs that can be used together with TMS. These new sensors will be benchmarked against conventional MEG sensors. Subsequently we will test the OPMs together with TMS. This will first be done using phantom recordings and subsequently tested in humans performing various tasks hypothesized to modulate brain connectivity. Within this proposal we are aiming at using up to 5 sensors. Therefore, B-conn will provide the stepping-stone for developing a whole-head OPM-MEG system with ~100 sensors in collaboration with commercial and academic partners. The longer-term goal is to develop an integrated stimulus-response system that can be used in clinical settings for diagnostic purposes by quantifying alterations in brain connectivity associated with communication delays and strengths. Examples are traumatic brain injury and neurodegenerative diseases.

Recent progress in various areas of physics has demonstrated our ability to control quantum effects in customized systems and materials, thus paving the way for a promising future for quantum technologies. The emergence of such quantum devices, however, requires one to understand fundamental problems in non-equilibrium statistical physics, which can pave the way towards full control of quantum systems, thus reinforcing new applications and providing innovative perspectives. This project is dedicated to the study and the control of out-of-equilibrium properties of quantum many-body systems which are driven across phase transitions. Among several approaches, it will mainly focus on slow quenches and draw on the understanding delivered by the Kibble-Zurek (KZ) mechanism. This rather simple paradigm connects equilibrium with out-of-equilibrium properties and constitutes a benchmark for scaling hypothesis. It could pave the way towards tackling relevant open questions, which lie at the heart of our understanding of out-of-equilibrium dynamics and are key issues for operating in a robust way any quantum simulator. Starting from this motivation, we will test the limits of validity of the KZ dynamics by analyzing its predictions, thus clarifying its predictive power, and extend this paradigm to quantum critical systems with long-range interactions and to topological phase transitions. We will combine innovative theoretical ideas of condensed-matter physics, quantum optics, statistical physics and quantum information, with advanced experiments with ultracold atomic quantum gases. Quantum gases are a unique platform for providing model systems with the level of flexibility and control necessary for our ambitious goal. Their cleanness and their robustness to decoherence will greatly enhance the efficient interplay between theory and experiments, and provide a platform of studies whose outcomes are expected to have a strong scientific impact over a wide range of disciplines. On the short time scale we will exploit this knowledge to develop viable protocols for quantum simulators. In general, we expect that the results of this project will lay the ground for the development of the next generation of quantum devices and simulators.