NEWSROOM

An international study published in Nature Materials has revealed vortex-like structures in an antiferroelectric material — a class of material with no net polarity. This unprecedented discovery challenges classical theories and opens up exciting new possibilities in materials physics.

Using a new technique, the ETH researchers succeeded in creating the first lithium niobate metalenses with precisely engineered nanostructures. While functioning as normal light focusing lenses, these devices can simultaneously change the wavelength of laser light. When infrared light with a wavelength of 800 nanometres is sent through the metalens, visible radiation with a wavelength of 400 nanometres emerges on the other side and is directed at a designated point.

“We were hugely surprised and excited when we saw the electrons exhibiting wave-like behavior along a preferred axis,” he recalls. “It was like throwing a stone into a pond and observing ripples travelling only left and right, and not in other directions—it seemed like smoking-gun evidence for SSB in a fluid of electrons.”

According to a study published in Advanced Functional Materials, the refined technique can bypass the high-temperature annealing and generates higher-purity diamond films than the original substrates. Moreover, the substrate sustains minimal damage in the process and can be reused, making the whole process resource-efficient and scalable.

If commercialized, this technology is expected to enable the development of memory devices that are tens of times smaller and faster than current models. Consequently, the storage capacity and processing speed of smartphones and computers could be significantly improved, accelerating advancements in high-speed data processing technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous vehicles.

With the declared aim of measuring matter under extreme pressure, an international research collaboration including DESY researchers and headed by the University of Rostock and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) used the high-performance laser DIPOLE 100-X at the European XFEL for the first time in 2023. With spectacular results: In this initial experiment they managed to study liquid carbon – an unprecedented achievement as the researchers report in the journal