Condensed matter physics and materials science form a dynamic partnership, exploring how the collective behavior of atoms gives rise to the unique properties of solids and liquids. This field bridges the gap between fundamental quantum mechanics and the practical engineering of everything from flexible electronics to superconductors, turning abstract theories into tangible innovations that shape our daily lives.

At Gist.Science, we process every new preprint in this category directly from arXiv to make these complex discoveries accessible to everyone. Our team generates both plain-language overviews and detailed technical summaries for each paper, ensuring that researchers, students, and curious minds alike can grasp the latest breakthroughs without getting lost in dense jargon.

Below are the latest papers in condensed matter and materials science, organized by their most recent publication dates.

🔬 applied physics

Anisotropic Thermal Characterization of Suspended and Spin-Coated Polyimide Films Using a Square-Pulsed Source Method

This study utilizes an optical Square-Pulsed Source (SPS) technique to characterize the anisotropic thermal properties of polyimide films, revealing that spin-coated films exhibit higher cross-plane thermal conductivity and lower anisotropy than suspended films due to differences in molecular orientation and substrate interactions.

Bingjiang Zhang, Dihui Wang, Tao Chen, Heng Ban, Puqing Jiang2026-04-15
🔬 applied physics

Thermal Characterization of Buried Interfaces in Multilayer Heterostructures via TDTR with Periodic Waveform Analysis

This paper introduces a frequency-tunable periodic waveform analysis TDTR technique to non-destructively characterize buried thermal interfaces in multilayer WBG/UWBG semiconductor heterostructures, revealing distinct phonon transport mechanisms and identifying specific thermal bottlenecks in Ga2O3/SiC, GaN/Si, and GaN/diamond systems.

Mingzhen Zhang, Puqing Jiang, Ronggui Yang2026-04-15
🔬 materials science

Electrochemical Performance of Gold Monolayers for Lithium-Ion Batteries: A First Principles Study

This first-principles study proposes two newly synthesized gold monolayer phases, goldene-I and goldene-II, as promising anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, demonstrating their metallic nature, structural stability, and high volumetric capacities with goldene-II reaching 0.783 Ah/cm³ and goldene-I exhibiting ultra-low diffusion barriers for rapid ion transport.

Ajay Kumara, Pritam Samanta, Prakash Parida2026-04-15
🔬 materials science

Symmetry breaking structural relaxation and optical transitions of native defects and carbon impurities in LiGa5_5O8_8

This paper revisits the structural relaxation and optical transitions of native defects and carbon impurities in LiGa5_5O8_8, specifically employing symmetry-breaking distortions to resolve previous contradictions and revise the transition levels of the lithium vacancy to better explain the material's p-type conductivity.

Klichchupong Dabsamut, Adisak Boonchun, Walter R. L. Lambrecht2026-04-15
🔬 materials science

Damage dose dependence of deuterium retention in high-temperature self-ion irradiated tungsten

This study demonstrates that high-temperature (1350 K) self-ion irradiation of tungsten creates nm-sized voids that serve as unique deuterium trapping sites, leading to a distinct damage dose dependence where deuterium retention surpasses that observed at lower temperatures and reaches 1.7 at.% at 2.3 dpa without saturation, a behavior explained by reaction-diffusion simulations involving both molecular gas and atomic trapping within the voids.

Mikhail Zibrov, Thomas Schwarz-Selinger, Michael Klimenkov, Ute Jäntsch2026-04-15
🔬 mesoscale physics

Remote Moiré Modulation of Decoupled Dirac Subsystems in Twisted Trilayer Graphene

This study demonstrates that in large-angle helical twisted trilayer graphene, a moiré potential generated at the hBN-aligned top layer can electrostatically modulate a spatially decoupled, structurally unmoiréd twisted bilayer subsystem, revealing that moiré effects can extend beyond their structural interfaces through remote coupling.

Dohun Kim, Junsik Choe, Takashi Taniguchi, Kenji Watanabe, Gil Young Cho, Youngwook Kim2026-04-15
🔬 materials science

Piezomagnetic Switching of Nonvolatile Antiferromagnetic States

This paper proposes a piezomagnetic writing scheme utilizing Mn3Ir-based memory cells and interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction to achieve deterministic, nonvolatile, and ultrafast switching of antiferromagnetic states, thereby overcoming the speed limitations of conventional isothermal methods for advanced spintronic applications.

Xilai Bao, Oleksandr Pylypovskyi, Huali Yang, Yali Xie, Damien Faurie, Fatih Zighem, Sophie Weber, Jiabin Wang, Jiachen (…)2026-04-15