Philip W Phillips

Philip W. Phillips is a Professor of Physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, affiliated with the Grainger College of Engineering and the Department of Physics. He holds the Bliss Faculty Scholar title and is recognized for his work on strongly correlated electron systems, particularly in high-temperature superconductivity, Mottness, and gauge/gravity duality. His research explores unconventional superconductors, topological insulators, and quantum critical phenomena.

Education:

• Bachelor's degree from Walla Walla College (1979)
• Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Washington (1982)
• Miller Fellowship at UC Berkeley (1982–1984)

Research Interests: Phillips focuses on explaining experimental deviations from standard paradigms in condensed matter physics. His work includes inventing models for Bose metals, Mottness, and the random dimer model. He investigates how strong electron interactions and disorder lead to novel states of matter, such as strange metals and topological phases. Recent efforts involve applying gauge/gravity duality (AdS/CFT) to cuprate superconductors and exploring quantum criticality in Fe-based systems.

Awards:

• Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2020)
• John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship (2015)
• APS Fellow (2002)
• Bliss Faculty Scholar (2005)

Teaching: Phillips has taught advanced courses including Condensed Matter Physics I/II, Space-Time and Matter, and University Physics. He has been recognized as an outstanding teacher multiple times.

Labs/Teams: Leads a research group focusing on theoretical condensed matter physics. Collaborates with experimentalists on topics like momentum-resolved electron energy loss spectroscopy and holographic models.