Seeds

Seed Highlights

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  (2025) Evolution of Catalyst Material Nanostructures

  Wisconsin MRSEC researchers investigated how metal ions of palladium and copper, stabilized in zeolites, rearrange when exposed to high temperatures or reactive environments. They used cutting-edge X-ray characterization to ‘see’ structural changes in real time. Metal ions rearrange when exposed to reactive environments and agglomerate into clusters over time, which no longer work as well. These clusters can be returned active catalysts through controlled high-temperature treatments. These insights inform the design of efficient catalysts for energy applications.

  November 11, 2025
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  (2025) Quantum Mechanics of 2D Electron Solids

  Researchers in the Wisconsin MRSEC have shown that bilayer electron crystals exhibit a variety of magnetic states depending on the distance between the two layers and the number of electrons in each layer. These state include ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic arrangements of electron spins, as well as exotic states like the valence-bond solid and spin-nematic. These results establish bilayer crystals as a promising platform for studying quantum magnetism and provide guidance for experiments characterizing electron solids realized in 2D materials.

  November 4, 2025
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  (2024) Integration of High-k STO with Novel GaN High Voltage Transistors

  Wisconsin MRSEC researchers have designed and fabricated a new dual-gate 1200 V GaN based bidirectional transistor with good performance. However, performance is limited by failure of the electrically insulating layer, which is currently amorphous silicon nitride (SiN), a conventional material. In the next generation of devices, the team has replaced SiN with a crystalline strontium titanate membrane (SrTiO3) developed by MRSEC IRG 2. SrTiO3 is a much better insulator, so the team expects record performance in ongoing device testing.

  October 7, 2025
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  Wisconsin MRSEC Investigator, Jason Kawasaki, Helps Shape Journal Issue Dedicated to Heusler Compounds

  Jason Kawasaki, an investigator with the Wisconsin Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison brought his passion for Heusler compounds to his appointment as guest editor of the June 2022 Issue of the MRS Bulletin.

  December 8, 2022
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  (2021) Controlling Waves with 3D Printed Materials

  Materials with a repetitive pattern the same size as the wavelength of a wave can be used to control the wave, causing it to bend, perfectly reflect or transmit, or even turn around corners. Where different patterns meet, even more exotic behavior occurs, including making highways for light or sound that only travel in one direction or where the waves cannot be dissipated. Synthesizing such materials is a major challenge, which  Wisconsin MRSEC researchers have met by adapting a family of 3D printing techniques.

  August 9, 2021
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