Research
Our group’s research is driven by a desire to understand how the properties of new materials arise from their atomic architecture, serving the broader goal of on-demand design of novel quantum materials for future technological applications. Functional properties such as multiferroicity, magnetoresistance, and high-temperature superconductivity will be the foundation of next-generation information and energy technologies: state-of-the-art electron microscopes grant us the ability to directly observe and quantify the detailed atomic configurations that define these behaviors.
From superconductors and magnets to catalysts and thermoelectrics, insights to atomic structure, chemistry, and bonding help us better understand exotic or functional materials from their most fundamental building blocks and translate this understanding to improved materials design. These compounds and devices in turn lay the groundwork for technologies ranging from next-generation computation to energy generation and storage to infrastructure. We are particularly interested in seeing things for the first time, whether it’s a newly discovered compound or a new region of phase space (e.g., in situ temperature, fields, or other stimuli), and are continually working to push the limits of what we can study in the electron microscope through both hardware and software developments.
Our research is built on strong collaborations with experts across the theory, synthesis, and measurement of quantum materials. We bridge fields of engineering, physics, materials science, and chemistry to look for creative solutions to complex problems and fundamental questions. Some current projects and topics are highlighted below, but the best way to find out what we’re currently excited about is to get in touch!
Pushing the limits of high resolution electron microscopy
We are always seeking experimental and analytical methods to afford new and meaningful insights. Our expanding capabilities allow us to ask bolder and deeper questions about the materials we study, while every material system pushes us to better and more ambitious experimental design.
Read more:
- Schnitzer et al. Atomic-scale tracking topological defect motion and incommensurate charge order melting. Physical Review X 15, 011007(2025).
- Goodge and Kourkoutis. Direct electron detection for atomic-resolution spectroscopic mapping under cryogenic and signal-limited conditions. Micron 200, 103921 (2026).
- Goodge et al. Atomic-Resolution Cryo-STEM Across Continuously Variable Temperatures. Microscopy and Microanalysis 26(3), 439–446 (2020).
High-temperature and unconventional superconductors
Motivated by both fundamental curiosity and the promise of revolutionary technologies, materials physicists have been working to understand superconductors for well over a century, with interest further exploding following the 1986 discovery of high-temperature superconductivity in copper oxides (cuprates). We investigate new superconductors at the atomic scale, working to understand how subtle changes in parameters such as bond angles or electronic structure can enhance or suppress its emergence. We try to disentangle intrinsic and extrinsic contributions to macroscopic properties, seeking to bridge comprehensive understanding within and between superconducting families.
Read more:
- Goodge and Norman. Nickelates provide answers about high-temperature superconductivity—and raise new questions. Physics Today 78:8, 28–33 (2025).
- Wang, Lee, and Goodge. Experimental Progress in Superconducting Nickelates. Annual Reviews of Condensed Matter Physics 15, 305-324 (2024).
- Bhatt et al. Resolving structural origins for superconductivity in strain-engineered La3Ni2O7 thin films. arXiv:2501.08204 (2025).
- Ranna et al. Disorder-induced suppression of superconductivity in infinite-layer nickelates. Physical Review Letters 135, 126501(2025).
- Goodge et al. Doping evolution of the Mott–Hubbard landscape in infinite-layer nickelates. PNAS, 118(2), e2007683118 (2021).
Quantum magnets
Dynamically tunable properties such as magnetic textures have many potential applications for next-generation information and communication technologies ranging from spintronics to broadband resonators. In many materials, however, these properties are defined by subtle changes in atomic configurations or valence. With local access to the lattice and electronic structure, we leverage STEM techniques to understand how order and disorder across length scales can define macroscopic functionalities.
Read more:
- Fender et al. Unconventional Superlattice Ordering in Intercalated Transition Metal Dichalcogenide V1/3NbS2. J. Am. Chem. Soc., 147:36, 32315–32320 (2025).
- Husremović et al. Tailored topotactic chemistry unlocks heterostructures of magnetic intercalation compounds. Nature Communications 16:1208 (2025).
- Goodge, Gonzalez, Xie, Bediako. Consequences and control of multi-scale (dis)order in chiral magnetic textures. ACS Nano 17:20, 19865–19876 (2023).
Materials design and engineering
We collaborate with leading synthesis and theory groups around the world to try and better understand and design new quantum materials by engineering their lattice chemistry or geometry. For example, epitaxial strain imparted by atomic-layer controlled thin film growth is a powerful way to tune materials properties, but can lead to unexpected yet important effects at the substrate-film interface or through the formation of secondary phases. Often, such effects are only visible through advanced local probes, making STEM a cornerstone capability in these collaborative team efforts.
Read more:
- Jin et al. Exploring van der Waals cuprate superconductors using a hybrid microwave circuit. Nano Letters 25:8, 3191–3198 (2025).
- Schreiber et al. A model heterostructure with engineered Berry curvature. APL Materials 11, 061117 (2023).
- Goodge et al. Disentangling types of lattice disorder for superconductivity in Sr2RuO4 by quantitative local probes. APL Materials 10, 041114 (2022).
- Goodge et al. Resolving the polar interface of infinite-layer nickelate thin films. Nature Materials 22, 466–473 (2023).
- Dawley et al. Defect accommodation in off-stoichiometric (SrTiO3)nSrO Ruddlesden–Popper superlattices studied with positron annihilation spectroscopy. Applied Physics Letters 117(6), 062901 (2020).