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Quantum materials

Quantum technology is set to revolutionise the world of information technology. New electronic states of matter involving the nanoscale magnets of electron spins will be at the heart of new solutions for data storage, data transmission and quantum computers. Quantum materials are also smart materials for new devices which combine electronic and magnetic properties and include superconductors, as the quest for high-temperature superconductivity continues. T

The neutron, with its spin and magnetic moment, is an exquisite probe of quantum materials, an area which represents about 30% of the research conducted at the ILL.

Highlights

ultrafast information processing

July 16, 2026 A new route towards smaller devices and ultrafast information processing

Polarised inelastic neutron scattering on IN20 directly revealed, for the first time, opposite-handed magnons in an altermagnet and showed that their chirality can be reversibly switched

IN20 Japan Quantum materials USA United Kingdom spectroscopy-group

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June 18, 2026 Quantum entanglement detected inside a centimetre-sized strange metal

Researchers used neutrons to study a strange metal. A high degree of quantum entanglement has been detected for the first time in a cm-sized crystal. Image: © TU Wien/Harald Ritsch

Austria Germany Quantum materials ThALES USA spectroscopy-group

Memory devices

May 12, 2026 Beyond 0 and 1: a material that can store four magnetic states

Neutron experiments reveal how a ferrotoroidic material can store information in four distinct magnetic states, paving the way for future memory technologies with increased storage capacity.

D3 Denmark France Quantum materials Sweden USA

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Nov. 28, 2025 A powerful tool to explore new magnetic states and quantum phenomena

A neutron diffraction experiment down to the unprecedented low temperatures of 160 mK under a pressure of 20 GPa has been made possible by novel in-house developments in cryogenic and high-pressure techniques at the ILL.

Neutron tech Quantum materials Magnetism XtremeD

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July 22, 2025 Magnetism, vortices and neutron spin echo: a winning combination

In a series of experiments published in Nature Physics, researchers from Japan, the UK, Sweden, and the Czech Republic collaborated at ILL-IN15, one of the world's leading spin echo facilities. Their neutron spin echo (NSE) experiments confirmed the presence of asymmetric dynamics in the skyrmion phase of MnSi, indicating its strong potential for spintronic devices and sustainable technology.

Highlights 2024 Quantum materials Magnetism IN15 Japan Czech Republic Sweden United Kingdom

July 10, 2025 Neither solid nor liquid : Neutrons help reveal an exotic state of matter

A team of researchers recently used the thermal-neutron two-axis diffractometer D23 at the ILL to investigate Na2 BaCo(PO4 )2 (NBCP), a material that surprisingly behaves as a ‘spin supersolid’ -a state combining properties of both a solid and a liquid. Neutrons, acting like tiny magnets themselves, were the ideal probes to reveal the hidden magnetic order and dynamics within this material. This discovery, which is also relevant for energy-efficient cooling, provides the first real-life evidence of a supersolid state in a quantum magnet.

Advanced materials D23 Germany Highlights 2024 Quantum materials