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Promising a myriad of transformative applications in various fields such as communications, security, chemical & biological sensing, and astronomy, terahertz (THz) technology is a very promising technological field. In order to realize efficient THz systems, development of active devices, such as detectors and emitters is required.

The UCSB MRSEC is excited to announce a new partnership with Santa Barbara’s Wolf Museum of Exploration and Innovation (MOXI). Open in 2017, the MOXI provides a space for hands-on exploration in science and creativity for children and families. In August 2018 the UCSB MRSEC provided a week of polymer activities in MOXI’s Innovation Workshop that attracted approximately 700 visitors.

Nanocrystal (NC) luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) represent a promising clean-energy technology capable of concentrating direct and diffuse light to reduce the area of photovoltaic (PV) cells – which are energetically costly to manufacture – required to meet energy demands.

Monolayer WTe2 is a quantum spin Hall insulator at temperatures below 100 K. This means that the current is carried by helical conducting edge modes and is spin polarized.

The inherently weak light-matter interaction at the nanoscale can be enhanced by new metal-dielectric hybrid nanomaterials. This enhancement can enrich some of the quantum and nonlinear features of light, leading to new nanophotonic applications. Nebraska MRSEC researchers have designed new hybrid heterostructure nanophotonic materials composed of plasmonic metals and dielectrics to manipulate photons at optical frequencies. They demonstrated tunable plasmonic resonant responses with narrowband spectra that can be used for nanosensing applications.

Topological antiferromagnetic spintronics is an emerging field of research where topological properties of a material are coupled to the antiferromagnetic ordering. Topological properties involve non-trivial electronic states, such as Dirac nodal lines, which are protected by the structural and magnetic symmetry of the material.

The CDCM RET program is unique in that it is designed specifically for K-5 teachers, with the intended purpose of engaging and sustaining student interest in STEM at a young age. In summer 2018, CDCM launched its inaugural program with 4 teachers participating, spanning grades 1st – 5th.

Strain engineering two-dimensional (2D) materials provides a new way to tailor electronic bandstructures and access novel electronic devices. A key route to strain 2D materials, such as graphene, is via underlying nanostructured substrates.

Not all members of our community have the time or resources to attend science outreach events. To reach some of those people, the Wisconsin MRSEC conducts its engaging, hands-on science activities to a local food pantry. Customers can wait up to 90 minutes at the food pantry, providing ample time for educational activities for kids, their parents, and other curious adult visitors.

In this work, molecular self-assembly of highly polarizable PAE molecules was used to create reconfigurable dielectric layers whose capacitance changes with illumination. Upon ultraviolet optical illumination, the PAE molecules undergo a photoisomerization from an extended trans geometry to a compact cis geometry, which can be reversed upon illumination at longer wavelengths.