First-principles analysis of functional oxides and metal organic frameworks

Abstract

Our quality of life is increasingly dependent on the advances in technology, which is in turn often furthered (impeded) by the (lack of) advances in materials. During and immediately following the industrial revolution in the nineteenth century, the advances in construction and transportation were driven by the advances in procurement and production of metals and alloys. Similarly, the post Second World War era saw unprecedented advances in polymers, ceramics, superalloys, and semiconductors. The information age [1] of today is driven by speed and size. Coupled with increasing energy demands, astronomical amounts of data handling, rapid progress in the field of medicine and health care, today’s materials research correspondingly focuses on efficient methods of energy storage [2], alternative fuels [3], increasing capacities of data storage and retrieval [4], effective vaccines with accurate drug delivery systems [5], and so on.