Zhifeng Ren: Boron Arsenide, a New Powerful Semiconductor for Electronics

Boron Arsenide, a New Powerful Semiconductor for Electronics

Abstract: Ultrahigh thermal conductivity has been constantly pursued for many applications whereas powerful semiconductors with extremely high carrier mobility in both electrons and holes are a must for many electronics. Diamond has the highest thermal conductivity but is an insulator, silicon and GaAs are used for our daily life but the thermal conductivity is too low, the band gap is not large enough nor the carrier mobility equally high enough. Boron arsenide was theoretically predicted to have a unique combination of thermal conductivity close to that of diamond, a band gap as large as 2 eV, and equally high mobility in both electrons and holes. In this talk, I will present the knowns and unknowns on the research on boron arsenide single crystals.

Bio: Zhifeng Ren is the Paul C. W. Chu and May P. Chern Endowed Chair in Condensed Matter Physics at the Department of Physics and the Director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity at the University of Houston (TcSUH). He received his BS in Mechanical Energinnering, MS in Materials Science and Engineering, and PhD in Condensed Matter Physics. His research focuses on thermoelectric materials and devices for cooling and power generation, boron arsenide single crystals for high thermal conductivity and carrier mobility, catalysts for H2 generation via water electrolysis, superconductors levitated high speed vehicles, heated HEPA filters for catching and killing SARS-CoV-2 causing COVID-19 pandemic, aligned carbon nanotubes, etc.