Clarkson Research Uses AI to Speed Discovery of Materials for Future Energy and Quantum Technologies

Researchers at Clarkson University are advancing the use of artificial intelligence and computational physics to accelerate discovery of next-generation materials for quantum technologies, optoelectronics, and renewable energy applications.

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Associate Professor of Physics Dhara Trivedi recently worked with scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory on a research project that combined machine learning, high-throughput computational modeling, and quantum-scale simulations to accelerate the discovery of advanced materials with specialized electronic and quantum properties.

The team studied two-dimensional perovskites, a group of materials that could improve technologies such as solar panels, sensors, lasers and next-generation computers. The research was published in npj Computational Materials, a journal in the Nature Portfolio.

Finding useful materials has traditionally taken years of testing in laboratories. By using artificial intelligence, researchers can now predict which materials are most promising before building them.

“Artificial intelligence helps us narrow down the best possibilities much faster,” Trivedi said. “That means scientists can spend more time developing technologies and less time searching for materials that may not work.”

The researchers created a database containing more than 2,000 possible material combinations and trained machine learning models to predict important electronic properties.

The materials identified in this work could enable advances in renewable energy, quantum information science, and next-generation optoelectronic technologies. Potential applications include more efficient solar cells, low-power electronic devices, quantum computing and communication systems, as well as photodetectors, LEDs, fiber-optic technologies, and advanced sensing platforms. The project also highlights how artificial intelligence and physics-based simulation can work together to accelerate discovery of materials for emerging technologies. .

The collaboration between Clarkson University and Los Alamos National Laboratory also demonstrates how universities and national research labs can work together to solve complex scientific challenges and develop technologies with real-world impact.

“This work shows how physics, computing and AI can come together to help solve important problems,” Trivedi said. “The long-term goal is to create materials that can improve technologies people use every day.”