Scientists remain intrigued by quasicrystals despite struggling to create them and characterise them since their discovery in the early 1980s.
Quasicrystals exhibit non-repeating patterns of atoms that challenge accepted notions of symmetry in crystalline materials.
Two studies, one by scientists at the University of Michigan and another led by the Colorado School of Mines, have shed new light on the thermodynamic stability of certain quasicrystals and developed ways to engineer and observe them as they form.
Further research at nanoscale and optical scales will help deepen knowledge of how quasicrystals come together and might reveal novel properties that could one day be harnessed for applications.
This renewed interest in quasicrystals could contribute to a wider reappraisal of what is possible in the world of materials.
The studies also reflect the growing importance of computational modelling for materials science.
This area of research is helping experts characterise new materials and learn how they might behave, without the need for costly and time-consuming experimental work.
This is especially important for the study of complex and previously intractable materials such as quasicrystals.
