Physicists at Auburn University have demonstrated how brief bursts of laser light can organize tiny electrical regions inside a crystal, solving a decades-old mystery regarding how the material behaves. The study investigated a modified form of strontium titanate, a material containing microscopic "polar nanoregions" with positive and negative sides. By using short laser pulses, researchers were able to temporarily align these electrical islands for roughly one picosecond—or one trillionth of a second—even at high…
Key points
The findings confirm that polar nanoregions exist prior to alignment rather than forming…: The findings confirm that polar nanoregions exist prior to alignment rather than forming simultaneously as atoms move.
Optical manipulation of tiny electrical regions provides potential pathways for next-gene…: Optical manipulation of tiny electrical regions provides potential pathways for next-generation, high-speed data processing and storage.
Auburn University scientists published the results of their crystal research in the journ…: Auburn University scientists published the results of their crystal research in the journal Physical Review Letters.
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- Date:
- November 14, 2026
- Source:
- Auburn University Department of Physics
- Summary:
- Scientists have discovered how to use flashes of laser light to organize tiny electrical regions inside a crystal, solving a decades-old mystery about how the material behaves. The laser-induced alignment lasts just a trillionth of a second, but the breakthrough could open the door to new ways of processing and storing information.
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Physicists at Auburn University have discovered how to use brief bursts of laser light to organize tiny electrical regions hidden inside a crystal. Their findings shed new light on a mystery that has puzzled researchers for decades and demonstrate how lasers can influence the material's electrical behavior. The breakthrough could eventually help scientists explore faster ways to process and store information.
The research was led by Wencan Jin, the Thomas and Jean Walter Endowed Associate Professor in Auburn's Department of Physics, and graduate student Mohamed Kandil. Their paper, "Optical Poling of a Quantum Ferroelectric Metal across the Order-Disorder Phase Transition," received an Editors' Suggestion designation from Physical Review Letters.…
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