We are happy to share the discovery of the ZIP phases, a brand-new family of compounds that could mark a revolution in materials science. These materials reveal atomic structures unlike anything seen before, opening exciting opportunities for future research and applications.
📄 A New Family of Ternary Intermetallic Compounds with Dualistic Atomic Ordering – The ZIP Phases
Matheus A. Tunes, et al. Advanced Materials, 2025 – Read the article here
The ZIP phases (short for zigzag intermetallic compounds) are a completely new family of materials with a remarkable feature — they can arrange their atoms in two very different ways, either like a FCC or in a layered hexagonal pattern.
We succeeded in creating these materials in the lab using advanced processing methods, and early studies show that they combine metallic and ceramic-like behaviors in unusual ways. Even more exciting, the layered versions of ZIP phases resemble the well-known MAX phases, which gave rise to the 2D wonder materials called MXenes. This raises the possibility that ZIP phases could also lead to new kinds of 2D materials with unique properties.
Discoveries like this remind us how much is still hidden in the periodic table — and how rethinking how atoms can be arranged may unlock entirely new technologies in the future. This work is the result of 10 years of research, a journey that began in Brazil with Professor Dr. rer. nat. Cláudio G. Schön, and has now come to fruition through my Director’s Fellow project at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Materials at Extremes 
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