Faculty Bio

Brad Trees

Richardson-Linebaugh Professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy; Department Chair; Pre-Engineering Program Director

Education

• B.A., Ohio Wesleyan University
• M.S., Ph.D., The Ohio State University

About

Brad Trees teaches introductory and upper-level physics courses. His specialty is theoretical condensed matter physics, and his research interests include the dynamics of Josephson junction arrays and the synchronization of coupled oscillators. He explains the latter as the study of how, when, and the potential benefits of getting signal-generating devices to work together.

Publications / Presentations

Dynamics of Josephson Junction Arrays: phase locking/synchronization, quantum macroscopic tunneling, quantum dynamics in arrays of Josephson junctions.

• "Charging a supercapacitor through a lamp: A power-law RC decay." M. L. Storms and B. R. Trees, Am. J. Phys. 90, 895-902 (2022)
• "Suppression of macrosopic quantum tunneling in a large Josephson junction coupled to a resonator," Brad R. Trees, Yaser H. Helal* (Ohio Wesleyan University), Joshua S. Schiffrin* (Carnegie Mellon University), and Brian M. Siller* (former OWU student, now at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), Phys. Rev. B 76, article number 224513 (2007).
• "Nanomechanical-resonator-induced synchronization in Josephson junction arrays," B. R. Trees, S. Natu*, and D. Stroud, Phys. Rev. B 72, article number 214524 (2005).
• ibid, Virtual Journal of Applications of Superconductivity, Jan. 1, 2006. (Chosen to appear by editor.)
• "Synchronization in disordered Josephson junction arrays: small-world connections and the Kuramoto model," B. R. Trees, V. Saranathan*, and D. Stroud, Phys. Rev. E 71, article number 016215 (2005).
• ibid, Virtual Journal of Applications of Superconductivity, Jan. 15, 2005. (Chosen to appear by editor.)
• "Synchronization of coupled rotators: Josephson junction ladders and the locally-coupled Kuramoto model," B. C. Daniels*, S. T. M. Dissanayake*, and B. R. Trees, Phys. Rev. E 67, article number 026216 (2003).
• ibid, Virtual Journal of Applications of Superconductivity, vol 4, issue 5, 2003. (Chosen to appear by editor.)
• "Phase locking in Josephson junction arrays: a review of recent theoretical work," B. R. Trees, in Studies of High Temperature Superconductors, vol. 39, edited by A. Narlikar (NOVA Science Publishers, Hungtinton NY, 2002).
• "Phase locking in Josephson ladders and the discrete sine-Gordon equation: the effects of boundary conditions and current induced magnetic fields," B. R. Trees and R. A. Murgescu*, Phys. Rev. E 64, article number 46205, 2001.
• "Instabilities in Josephson ladders with current induced magnetic fields," B.R. Trees and R. A. Murgescu*, Phys. Rev. B 63, article number 144503, 2001.
• "Floquet exponents of underdamped Josephson ladders: a comparison with predictions of the discrete sine-Gordon equation," B. R. Trees and N. Hussain*, Phys. Rev. E 61, 2000, pp. 6415–6425.
• "Two-dimensional arrays of Josephson junctions in a magnetic field: a stability analysis of synchronized states," B. R. Trees and D. Stroud, Phys. Rev. B 59, 1999, pp. 7108–7115.
• "Linear arrays of Josephson junctions: a stability analysis of characteristic modes," B. R. Trees and E. B. Harris, Phys. Rev. B 57, 1998, pp. 5425–5431.

Recipient of the 2022 Libuse L. Reed Endowed Professorship and the 2003 Sherwood Dodge Shankland Award for Encouragement of Teachers