Super heat conductor challenges fundamental physics
With performance three times better than copper’s, this new material could substantially improve heat management of electronics, data centers and energy systems
Copper moves the world’s heat. For more than a century it has been recognized as one of the best heat conductors in nature, and this property made copper the go-to choice to cool electronics, industrial equipment, data centers and power systems. But there’s a new, record-breakingly cool metal in town.
As reported in Science, a metallic material called θ-phase tantalum nitride achieved a thermal conductivity of about 1,110 watts per meter-kelvin—about three times higher than copper’s 400 watts per meter-kelvin. And it works in a way scientists have never seen before. “Our result breaks the historic ceiling for heat transport in metallic materials,” says senior author Yongjie Hu, a physicist and engineer at the University of California, Los Angeles. “Given [this conductor’s] superior performance, it has the potential to complement or even replace copper.”
Similar to the way pure carbon can form diamonds, graphene, or other structures, tantalum nitride exists in multiple forms with very different properties. Scientists have known about some of those forms for decades, but until now no one had studied the specific configuration Hu and his colleagues focused on, in which the material’s atoms are arranged in a continuous, highly ordered crystal lattice. In this structure, the researchers found that both electrons and packets of vibrational energy called phonons, which carry heat and sound, encountered less resistance compared with conventional metals, letting them conduct heat better.
On supporting science journalism
If you’re enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.
The material also revealed a previously unexplored strategy to boost to metallic heat conduction. In ordinary metals, phonons are frequently disrupted by collisions with one another and with electrons, reducing their ability to dissipate heat. In the form of tantalum nitride that Hu and his colleagues studied, the atomic structure of the crystal lattice lets phonons travel unusually long distances with minimal interference. This discovery provides a new direction for scientists designing next-generation thermal materials, Hu says.
The study’s findings “are both exceptional and conceptually important,” says Xiaojia Wang, a mechanical engineer at the University of Minnesota who was not involved in the research. The team rigorously verified its measurements, which suggests they are robust, she says, and if the material can be manufactured at scale, it could have a “substantial impact” on thermal management for electronics, data centers and energy systems.
Hu adds that θ-phase tantalum nitride could be especially valuable as artificial intelligence gains even more widespread use and heat dissipation becomes a data-center bottleneck. For materials scientists, the work could also provide inspiration to challenge other long-standing constraints. “Do we truly understand where the real limits lie, or do the boundaries assumed for decades to be fundamental simply reflect our current tools and understanding?” Hu asks. “Now that the record has been broken for heat conduction, it makes us rethink whether other assumed boundaries in materials physics could also be broken.”
It’s Time to Stand Up for Science
If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.
I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.
If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.
In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can’t-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world’s best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.
There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.