Daniel Dessau, a JILA Fellow and professor of physics at the University of Colorado Boulder
JILA Fellow and University of Colorado Boulder physics professor Daniel Dessau's research was recently highlighted in an article from The Washington Post focusing on the recent room-temperature superconductor and its controversial science.
In late July, researchers from South Korea published a paper revealing a possible new room-temperature superconductor. Known as LK-99, this material created a whirlwind of controversy and confusion within the scientific community as physicists and chemists began working to reproduce the results of this study. In the past few weeks, several papers have been published debunking the existence of LK-99 as a room-temperature superconductor, instead positing that it is a type of magnet. More research is ongoing to confirm these findings.
As Dessau focuses on heating materials to 1,700 degrees Fahrenheit and seeing their by-products, his work could help pave the way for discovering possible other exotic materials. According to The Washington Post article: "Dessau said he is keeping his mind open that there may yet be some material of interest in the mixture created by the recipe."
The Physics Frontiers Centers (PFC) program supports university-based centers and institutes where the collective efforts of a larger group of individuals can enable transformational advances in the most promising research areas. The program is designed to foster major breakthroughs at the intellectual frontiers of physics by providing needed resources such as combinations of talents, skills, disciplines, and/or specialized infrastructure, not usually available to individual investigators or small groups, in an environment in which the collective efforts of the larger group can be shown to be seminal to promoting significant progress in the science and the education of students. PFCs also include creative, substantive activities aimed at enhancing education, broadening participation of traditionally underrepresented groups, and outreach to the scientific community and general public.