Pioneering ‘Quantum Metallurgy’
A gradient of defects in an electron crystal structure. The top of the image, in blue, represents cooler temperatures in which the spacing between electron clusters (white dots) is more uniform. The structure becomes less uniform moving down towards the h
Researchers led by MSE Associate Professor Robert Hovden have discovered that “electron crystals”—ordered patterns of electrons known as charge density waves—can deform and melt in ways strikingly similar to ordinary solids, a finding that could open new avenues for superconductors and energy-efficient neuromorphic computing. The team showed that as these quantum structures heat up, they accumulate defects and lose order in predictable stages, altering the material’s electrical behavior. By studying tantalum sulfide with electron diffraction imaging and computer simulations, the researchers found evidence that this melting behavior may be universal across many quantum materials. The work suggests scientists may eventually be able to engineer quantum materials the way metallurgists tailor metals—by controlling disorder to tune properties such as conductivity and superconductivity.