Arjun Yodh Helps Uncover Mechanism Behind Solid-Solid Phase Transitions

Working in collaboration with researchers from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Arjun Yodh, director of the Laboratory for Research on the Structure of Matter and James M. Skinner Professor of Science, published an article in Nature Materials on solid-solid phase transitions. These transitions occur when two solids made of the same elements but with different geometric arrangements of the atoms, or crystal phases, produce materials with different properties—diamonds and coal are a vivid example. The team found that some crystals have an easier time of making the solid-solid transition if they take it in two steps. The observations provide new insight for all sorts of solid-solid phase transformations, and have potential implications for development and manufacture of alloys, as well as natural processes that occur deep within Earth's mantle.

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