We already have quantum computers, but they're highly specialized, not particularly practical, and only cover a fraction of the performance potential that scientists think this technology could ultimately unlock.
Quantum materials can host several competing electronic states, and figuring out how those states form is a longstanding challenge – which brings us to a new study published in Nature Physics.
The study by an international team of researchers investigates how two charge density wave (CDW) phases can emerge and co-exist in the same material.
The researchers use these relatively simple phases of electron behavior as a model for understanding phase competition in more complex quantum materials, including those with superconductivity and magnetism.
"Just like superconductivity, charge density waves are a collective phenomena where electrons move together in certain ways," says physicist Yifan Su, from MIT.
"The power of CDWs is that they are a much simpler form of matter compared to superconductivity. They offer a playground for fundamental understanding."
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