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Highlights

Research achievements from the NSF MIP community.

Research Highlights

<p><em>Figure 1: (<strong>Left, top</strong>) Brightfield micrograph of an epitaxial In<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> 10mm × 10mm sample grown by S-MBE with a transistor structure demonstrating the full transparency of the devices. (<strong>Left, bottom</strong>) Darkfield micrograph of the same sample at a higher magnification where the outline of the transistor structures can be seen. (<strong>Right</strong>) Comparison of the saturation drain current I<sub>D</sub> and the currents on/off ratio (I<sub>on</sub>/I<sub>off</sub>) achieved for the devices shown in this work (red crosses) together with the best values from the literature. Devices fabricated at BEOL-incompatible temperatures are shaded. Fully-transparent devices are marked in red. Not fully transparent devices usually rely on a non-transparent contact. Solid symbols denote devices operated in enhancement mode, while devices operated in depletion mode are marked with open symbols.</em></p>
Sep 1, 2025
Cornell University

Fully transparent transistors fabricated at Back-End-of-Line conditions

PARADIM’s Highlight #109 reports that suboxide MBE (S-MBE) enables epitaxial In2O3 at BEOL temperatures, yielding the highest-performance fully transparent oxide TFTs to date. The pre-oxidized In2O beam provides exceptional crystal quality and BEOL-compatible devices, accelerating open collaboration and 22 publications across 34 PARADIM projects.
<p>Figure 1: <strong>(left) </strong>Solvent Laser Pedestal (LPG) and Traveling Solvent Floating Zone (TSFZ) of h-BN combines an intermetallic flux with a boron or boron nitride feed and nitrogen gas to enable controlled crystallization of h-BN without requiring extreme pressure. <strong>(right) </strong>optimized samples (blue) produced in this fashion have no observable in-plane defect photoluminescence at 3.9/4.1 eV. Well-resolved photon sub-bands at 5.8 eV, indicating quality at least as good as previous state of the art produced by high pressure methods, and now in larger crystal boule sizes than was previously possible. (Patent Pending)</p>
Aug 1, 2025
Cornell University

Growth of hexagonal BN crystals by traveling-solvent floating zone

PARADIM Highlight #108 reports scalable growth of high-purity hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) crystals via solvent laser pedestal and traveling-solvent floating-zone methods, achieving 3–5 mm diameters and multi-mm lengths. This enables larger, defect-minimized h-BN for 2D devices; funded by PARADIM, with collaborators at KU, Texas Tech, Montpellier, UCSB, JHU.
<p><em><strong>Figure </strong><strong>1</strong>: (<strong>left</strong>) Magnetic field-dependent topological Hall resistivity of FeGe film irradiated at 10<sup>13</sup> ions/cm<sup>2</sup> at 100 K. Each quadrant is labeled with the corresponding topological spin texture type and polarization associated with the peak or dip. (<strong>right</strong>) Temperature-dependent effective crystalline volume fraction X for the irradiated FeGe films during annealing.</em></p>
Jun 1, 2025
Cornell University

Structural Properties & Recrystallization Effects in Ion Beam-Modified FeGe Thin Films

PARADIM researchers explore tunable disorder in epitaxial FeGe (B20) films to host skyrmions and antiskyrmions. Ion irradiation creates crystalline–amorphous regions; subsequent in situ annealing alters crystalline volume fraction per Johnson–Mehl–Avrami–Kolmogorov kinetics. This tunable system may enable novel spintronic magnetic textures and devices.
<p><strong>Figure 1:(Left)</strong> Schematic of depositing Fe precursors onto 2<em>H</em>–TaS2 crystals on SiO2/Si support followed by vacuum annealing to yield Fe-intercalated 2<em>H</em>–TaS2 (Fe<em>x</em>TaS2). <strong>(Right)</strong> Atomic resolution electron microscopy after chemical treatment (<strong>top</strong>) plus annealing at 350 °C for 30 minutes (<strong>bottom</strong>). Scale bars 1 nm.</p>
Jun 1, 2025
Cornell University

Topotactic Ion Intercalation for Designer Magnetic Heterostructures and Devices

UC Berkeley researchers have developed a method to synthesize magnetic intercalation compounds within transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), enhancing the customization of electronic and magnetic device architectures. This approach, utilizing thermal annealing and atomic-resolution imaging, allows for precise control over material properties, opening avenues for advanced spintronic applications.
<p><em><strong>Figure </strong><strong>1</strong>: (<strong>Left</strong>) Mössbauer spectra of BaFe<sub>12</sub>O<sub>19</sub> in two forms: (Top) a randomly oriented powder and (Bottom) a single-crystal film. The dashed arrows point to missing peaks not seen in the powder. These missing peaks signify that the magnetic moments in the film lie in either up or down directions. (<strong>Right</strong>) Crystal structure with arrows on the <sup>57</sup>Fe atoms indicating the directions of their magnetic moments.</em></p>
Jun 1, 2025
Cornell University

Sensing the Local Magnetic Environment in Thin Films

PARADIM Highlight #106 discusses the application of Mössbauer spectroscopy, specifically conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (CEMS), to study thin films of isotopically purified iron. Researchers from Spelman College and Cornell University explored the magnetic orientation of iron in films, demonstrating its utility in analyzing complex magnetic structures.
<p><em>Figure 1: (left) Schematic of the pressure created in the nickelate film grown on SLAO substrate leading to 2% compressive strain (red curve). (right) Resistivity versus temperature plots of the ozone-annealed films, red curve for the film on SLAO substrate.</em></p>
May 1, 2025
Cornell University

Signatures of Ambient Pressure Superconductivity

Stanford/SLAC team led by Harold Hwang stabilized ambient-pressure superconductivity in bilayer nickelate La3Ni2O7 thin films using substrate-induced lateral compression, achieving Tc about 26–42 K; defects and oxygen content influence transport. PARADIM EM techniques enabled microstructure insights. This opens routes to studying superconductivity in nickelates at ambient pressure.
<p>Figure 1:<strong> </strong>(<strong>a</strong>) Flowchart of the four-stage hybrid computational workflow. (<strong>b</strong>) SHAP analysis of the SEML model for the prediction of unstable stacking fault energy (USFE), revealing the influence of elemental concentrations on the USFE. (<strong>c</strong>) Experimentally synthesized MPEAs, which showed qualitative agreement with computational predictions.</p>
May 1, 2025
Cornell University

Experimentally validated Inverse Design of FeNiCrCoCu MPEAs and Unlocking Key Insights with Explainable AI

Researchers developed a machine learning-based computational workflow to design FeNiCrCoCu multi-principal element alloys (MPEAs) with improved mechanical properties. Synthesized MPEAs showed experimental validation of predictions. This integrated approach enhances materials design and can be applied to various material systems. Research supported by GlycoMIP and PARADIM.
Novel precision glycopolymers enable fine control over interactions with carbohydrate-binding proteins
Apr 1, 2025
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Novel precision glycopolymers enable fine control over interactions with carbohydrate-binding proteins

C. A. Williams, D. J. Stone, S. Y. Joshi, G. Yilmaz, P. Farzeen, S. Jeon, Project summary: Synthetic glycopolymers are promising Z. Harris-Ryden, C. R. Becer, S. A. Deshmukh, and C. E. Callmann
A team of researchers, led by Cassandra Callmann at The University of Texas at Austin, developed a synthesis method for glycopolymers that affords precise control over polymer length, backbone structure, and density of pendant carbohydrates. The team identified the latter to be a critical factor for lectin binding with grafting densities below 50% resulting in weaker interactions.
<p><em>Figure 1: (Left) Atomic-resolution imaging and atomic displacement, arrows showing direction &amp; amplitude, and orientation map of the displacement stripes at 198 K. (Right) Charge order defects and motion at low temperatures as indicated, while tracking the position of a topological defect (red T marker) and its trajectory through the material (thin red line).</em></p>
Apr 1, 2025
Cornell University

Tracking Topological Defect Motion Through Temperature at the Atomic Scale

PARADIM Highlight #102 reports atomic-resolution tracking of topological defects during the melting of charge-ordered Bi(1−x)Sr(x−y)Ca(y)MnO3 using cryogenic scanning transmission electron microscopy. It reveals defect-network reconfigurations and incommensurate charge order, offering nanoscale insight into electronic phase transitions with relevance to superconductivity and quantum materials.
<p>Figure: <strong>a</strong>) Thermodynamic phase-field simulations of biaxially compressed KNbO<sub>3</sub> on SrTiO<sub>3</sub>, DyScO<sub>3</sub>, and GdScO<sub>3</sub> marked by red, blue, and violet lines. Blue and violet stars indicate the onset of the tetragonal-to-monoclinic transition temperature observed experimentally. <strong>b</strong>) Rate of Curie temperature change with strain <em>vs</em>. change in remanent polarization with strain plotted for KNbO<sub>3</sub> compared to related materials. <strong>c</strong>) Cartoon of MBE ≈ “atomic spray painting” in action</p>
Apr 1, 2025
Cornell University

The Right Squeeze: Crafting the Ferro-electric Transitions of KNbO3 Thin Films

PARADIM Highlight #99 reports KNbO3 ferroelectric thin films grown by suboxide molecular-beam epitaxy, showing colossal strain tuning: Tc exceeds 975 K, a single tetragonal phase persists from 10–975 K, polarization up 46%, and second-harmonic generation up ~200%. Lead-free material with high-temperature ferroelectric potential.

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