PRESIDENT’S REPORT 2015
A whole new matter
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| Technion Distinguished Prof. Mordechai Segev |
Quasiperiodic materials have unique electrical, optical, and mechanical properties. While bulk quasicrystals tend to be brittle, surface coatings benefit from the hardness of quasicrystals. Alloys containing quasicrystalline nanoparticles are stronger and lighter than other materials. Applications have included cookware, maraging stainless steel, surgical tools, missile skins and a storage medium for hydrogen.
The Technion quasicrystal legacy continues with research into photonic quasicrystals spearheaded by Distinguished Prof. Mordechai (Moti) Segev. Segev’s team was the first
to demonstrate nonlinear photonic quasicrystals: dielectric materials whose refractive index varies in a quasiperiodic fashion, and in addition change their properties when the light intensity is increased.
to demonstrate nonlinear photonic quasicrystals: dielectric materials whose refractive index varies in a quasiperiodic fashion, and in addition change their properties when the light intensity is increased.
In 2011, Segev’s team reported a direct experimental observation that transport in photonic
quasicrystals is enhanced by virtue of disorder.
quasicrystals is enhanced by virtue of disorder.