In Summer 2019 the I-MRSEC officially released the web series “Magnetic Fields,” which follows middle school aged characters as they encounter a new material at the I-MRSEC, and emphasizes the scientific process, persistence, and the diversity of scientists. The episodes include “Behind the science,” featuring interviews with I-MRSEC researchers sharing their paths in science and advice to those interested in STEM studies.

MEM-C has developed a unique high-resolution x-ray emission spectrometer for studying phosphorus-rich, air-sensitive materials.

This works demonstrated a series of morphological changes could be induced with a small set of monomers due to the use of reversible covalent bonding interactions.

We investigate spin current in a magnetic insulator, YIG, under thermally driven  non-equilibrium conditions, a challenging task for conventional transport techniques. 

At the University of Chicago MRSEC, Park and Sibener developed a synthesis of two-dimensional (2D) polymers with wafer-scale homogeneity, one monolayer thick, using a general and scalable growth method called laminar assembly polymerization.

In a concentrated suspension of small solid particles in a liquid under shear, a large number of dynamically evolving particle-particle and particle-liquid interfaces controls the overall flow properties.

Hexagonal boron nitride is a suitable host for single-photon emitters and single-spin centers.  Strong single-photon emission has been observed, but the source was not identified.  Based on advanced first-principles simulations, the origins have now been pinpointed: the 2 eV emission has been attributed to boron dangling bonds, and 4 eV emission to carbon-carbon dimers.

We demonstrate a route to high quality interfaces between IV-VI PbSnSe and conventional III-V semiconductors, offering means to host and manipulate electronic states that arise at this interface. We can now clarify the extent to which topological protection from backscattering persist in systems at relevant length scales for logic and interconnects using these novel materials. Heterostructures between IV-VI and III-V materials may enable mid-infrared on-chip environmental and biological sensing.

Professor Theanne Schiros spoke to a full house of over 700 as part of a Sustainability Summit focused on the environmental impact of the fashion industry and positive solutions. She is in engaged in sustainable development for economic empowerment of women and artisans in Guinea and Cote d’Ivoire, providing trainings on natural dyes and biofabrication.

The Zhu group developed a facile method to disassemble vdW single crystals layer by layer into monolayers with near-unity yield and with dimensions limited only by bulk crystal sizes (scheme shown on top). The macroscopic monolayers are comparable in quality to microscopic monolayers from conventional Scotch tape exfoliation.