The Novel Materials Laboratory is designed for synthesis and characterization of novel materials for technologically significant applications. The emphasis is on an understanding of the structure-property relationships of new material systems in developing a comprehensive understanding of their physical properties. The effect of structural and chemical variations on the transport, optical, magnetic and mechanical properties of materials is thus of paramount interest. The laboratory applies this understanding in developing new and novel materials towards significant advancements in energy-related technologies. Close collaboration with industry, national laboratories and other universities is typical in this interdisciplinary research program that encompasses all aspects of physics, materials science and chemistry. Our research is funded by the II-VI Foundation, Army Research Office, Department of Energy - Basic Energy Sciences, Department of Energy - Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, National Science Foundation, Office of Naval Research, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund, and industry. Students have received prestigious awards, including NRC, DAAD, University and Presidential Fellowships, and industrial internships. Students and postdocs from the Novel Materials Laboratory have accepted positions in industry, academia and national laboratories.

“From the scientist Ioffe in Saint Petersburg, Russia in the 1950s to researcher Julian Goldsmid in the early 1970s, the field of thermoelectrics has seen many advances”, begins Mark Shreiner of WUSF’s University Beat before interviewing Prof. Nolas on technological advances of his research in the field of thermoelectrics. To hear the interview go to WUSF University Beat