High-temperature superconductors carry large DC electric current with no resistance and can generate intense magnetic fields in compact devices. They are key to fusion energy, efficient generators, electric motors for aviation and transportation, and power transmission cables for the grid and data centers. TEMI faculty measure the electrical performance and mechanical behavior of superconducting conductors under realistic operating conditions, while exploring new compounds and the manufacturing processes used to deposit them. Because these devices operate at temperatures below 77 K, advanced cryogenics and cryocoolers are required to maintain them below their critical temperature. Ultimately, our goal is to make superconducting technologies more affordable, reliable, and scalable.
Core Faculty
Luisa Chiesa
Keywords: Electrical and Mechanical Characterization, High-Temperature Superconductors, Fusion Energy, Transmission Lines
Luisa Chiesa is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Her primary research interest is superconducting materials for energy applications. Chiesa’s lab specializes in electrical and mechanical measurements of those materials. Among the applications of interest and relevant to TEMI are electromagnets used in fusion energy machines, efficient generators for the wind industry or motors for the aviation and transportation sectors. Another application is electrical cables for the efficient delivery and distribution of electricity in the grid or in data centers supporting computing intensive technologies.
Luke Davis
Keywords: Inorganic Materials Chemistry, Zero-Emissions Ironmaking, Critical Metals, Thin-Film Photovoltaics, Molecular Light Absorbers and Emitters, Superconducting Hydrides
Luke Davis is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry. His laboratory works on synthesis and characterization in inorganic and materials chemistry, with a focus on problems that have important societal implications. Current projects include zero-emissions ironmaking and the production of other critical metals by alternative thermochemical routes such as ammonia reduction, earth-abundant sulfide absorbers for tandem thin-film photovoltaics, and high-spin iron and manganese complexes that absorb and emit light. He is also developing new programs on hydride superconductors that could be stable at ambient pressure and on volatile molecular precursors for depositing the metals used in superconducting wires.
Laurent Pilon
Keywords: Transport and Interfacial Phenomena, Electrochemical Materials, Operando Calorimetry, Superconductors, Cryogenics, Circularity
Laurent Pilon is the inaugural Director of the Tufts Epsilon Materials Institute and the Epsilon Energy Materials Innovation Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. His Gradient Lab works at the intersection of transport phenomena, interfacial phenomena, and materials science for sustainable energy technologies. The group develops operando calorimetry and electrothermal methods that reveal the thermal signatures of charging and degradation in batteries and electrochemical capacitors. Building on his experience as Associate Director for Technology and Program Director at ARPA-E, where his programs addressed high-temperature superconducting tapes, the circularity of the battery supply chain, and advanced manufacturing, he is launching new research on cryogenics and high-temperature superconducting technologies.
Also in: Energy Storage Materials
Paul J. Simmonds
Keywords: Electronic Materials, Quantum Materials, Photonic Materials, Nanomaterials, III-V Semiconductors, Superconductors, Topological Insulators, Quantum Dots
Paul J. Simmonds is an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. His lab works at the convergence between materials science, electrical engineering, and solid-state physics. TEMI helps them harness the power of interdisciplinary collaboration for answering big, important questions. Research interests include novel electronic/photonic nanomaterials, superconductor/semiconductor integration, quantum light sources, topological materials, and infrared devices. The team creates these materials using molecular beam epitaxy, an advanced technique for ultrapure, atomically precise crystal growth. Understanding the physics underlying material behavior allows them to design and tailor their properties for specific applications.