Researchers Uncover Unique Material 'Tridymite' That Acts As Glass and Crystal When Heated

Researchers have unveiled a never-before-seen mineral that can act both as a glass and a crystal. It was detected in a 1724 meteorite stored at the National Museum of Natural History in Paris, France, by experts. This meteorite landed in Steinbach, Germany. Details of this material have been provided in a study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). If the assertions are right, then it could be a breakthrough in the functioning of electronic devices. Researchers arrived at their conclusions using methodologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum physics. The insights could also reveal the thermal history of planets where it has been detected, like Mars. 

Tridymite's Unique Properties

The subject of the study is a form of silicon dioxide called tridymite, according to Science Daily. This mineral, over the years, has been found in multiple meteorites as well as on the Red Planet's surface. For this study, researchers examined the mineral from the 1724 meteorite, with special permission from the museum. The results of the investigation indicated that the mineral does not follow the conventional rules of heat conduction. Researchers uncovered that tridymite manages to maintain 'constant' thermal conductivity across a wide range of temperatures. This insight could prove to be a breakthrough in the arena of electronic devices, steel manufacturing, and aerospace.

Importance of Heat

Heat is a major factor in the functioning of any kind of technology, according to Interesting Engineering. From microchips to rockets, how the components in them conduct heat decides their performance. Both crystal and glass are crucial building materials in technological appliances. Their exhibiting opposite heat conduction behaviors becomes an issue when it comes to optimizing equipment involved in applications that demand precise thermal management.

In the case of crystals, heat conductivity decreases with a rise in temperature. For glass, it is opposite, heat conductivity increases with a temperature rise. To resolve this issue and find ways to make the aforementioned optimization easier, researchers decided to understand the relationship between a material's atomic structure and its heat conductivity.

Through machine learning (ML), researchers pinpointed the specific atomic properties that impact heat conductivity. It helped them to arrive at a single framework that could explain heat conductivity in both crystal and glass, something that had not been done before. The press release shared that the equation "describes the intermediate behavior of defective or partially disordered materials, such as those used in thermoelectrics for waste-heat recovery, perovskite solar cells, and thermal barrier coatings for heat shields." Researchers utilized this equation to examine tridymite and arrived at it being 'constant' in thermal conductivity, due to possessing an intermediate crystal-glass atomic structure. 

Examination of Meteorite

The team verified their 'constant' hypothesis on a tridymite sample from the 1724 meteorite. During experiments, they confirmed that the sample's thermal conductivity remained virtually constant from 80 Kelvin to 380 Kelvin. Experts speculate that tridymite could be created in refractory bricks after several decades of thermal aging. These bricks are used in furnaces to manufacture steel. If tridymite becomes part of this manufacturing process, then not only can it reduce carbon emissions from the process, but also create steel materials with more capability in controlling heat, and hence, a smaller carbon footprint.

Tridymite is also found in extraterrestrial sites, like Mars. Hence, the unique property also provides a glimpse into the thermal history of such places. More details about heat flow in such hybrid materials as tridymite could also reveal information about other kinds of phenomena in solids, like charge-carrying electrons and spin-carrying magnons. It can transform the way future technologies are formulated.