Elizabeth Dresselhaus (WPI-SKCM², Hiroshima University)

Abstract

Randomness is ubiquitous in nature, instrumental in technology, and often is the root of puzzles and games. In this talk I will focus on amorphous networks, which exhibit long range randomness while conserving short-range order. A variety of material platforms reside on amorphous networks, where amorphousness can lend these materials additional functionality. Amorphous silicon in solar cells has similar electronic properties to its crystalline counterparts but is better suited to scalable fabrication. In N95 masks, amorphous polymer networks block pathogens while maintaining breathability. We can understand the interplay between amorphous networks and material constraints by encoding them into puzzles and games. In this talk I will introduce two such examples. First, I will introduce a game recently developed at SKCM2 to incrementally introduce amorphous disorder into an ordered network. Understanding the network structures that arise from this game will aid researchers in developing materials with varying degrees of amorphousness. Then I will first describe a class of puzzles that illuminate localized structures that emerge in amorphous tight binding models when a chiral parameter is introduced. At the end, lecture participants will be given the opportunity to try a puzzle or play the game to compete for creator of the most random network!

Zoom information

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2022111100

(Meeting code: 2022111100 Password: skcm2)