Robert Cava, an investigator in the Moore Foundation's Emergent Phenomena in Quantum Systems initiative, was awarded the Materials Research Society Medal.
The medal is awarded for a specific outstanding recent discovery or advancement that has a major impact on the progress of a materials-related field. Cava was honored for his "pioneering contributions in the discovery of new classes of 3D topological insulators."
Topological insulators are materials that are insulating in their interior but can support the flow of electrons on their surface. This new class of materials could be used for quantum computers and other next-generation electronic devices.
Cava notes the key to successful use of topological insulators hinges on high quality materials in single crystal form on which experiments can be performed. These experiments inform theoretical ideas and developments, and often lead to unexpected observations.
With his collaborators at Princeton and Brookhaven National Laboratory, Cava has been working in a theory-synthesis-crystal growth-materials characterization loop to discover and develop crystals of new materials to feed into this rapidly moving field.
Cava is the Russell Wellman Moore Professor of Chemistry at Princeton University. His research includes the solid-state chemistry of electronic and magnetic materials, emphasizing their structure-chemistry-property relationships.
He joined Princeton in 1997 after working at Bell Laboratories for 17 years, where he was a Distinguished Member of the Technical Staff. Cava is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and a foreign member of The Royal Society (London).
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