New Materials with Extreme Properties and Performance from Compression of Condensed Matter

Extreme environments – notably extreme pressures and temperatures, but also intense particle and electromagnetic fields – can profoundly affect condensed matter, leading to the discovery of new materials with remarkable, even unprecedented, properties and performance. Recent experimental and theoretical studies conducted in the Chicago/DOE Alliance Center (CDAC). CDAC’s Chemical and Material Extremes Science Thrust have led to discoveries of new materials with extreme properties and performance, including novel structure and bonding at high densities, extreme chemical reactivity, and emergent electronic, magnetic, and other quantum properties. Recent advances include the discovery of hydrides with near room-temperature superconductivity, pressure-induced states of novel high-entropy compounds, high-energy density materials, and materials with unique dielectric and multifunctionalities. This research is supported by the DOE/NNSA (DE-NA0004153).