Electric field tunes vibrations to ease heat transfer

New research from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory found that applying an electric field to a ceramic material removes barriers to phonon transport, conducting heat almost three times more efficiently along the field direction, challenging conventional understanding about controlling heat flow in solid materials.

Magical Metals: How Shape Memory Alloys Work

This TED-Ed video by Ainissa Ramirez explains how shape memory alloys work, covering the martensite-austenite phase transition, NASA antenna applications, and the fundamental science behind these remarkable materials.