Hanyu Zhu is a researcher at Rice University, associated with the Smalley-Curl Institute. He leads the group whose work on quantum vibrations in boron arsenide is reported in the source dossier.
The Rice University video summary states that researchers led by Zhu demonstrated record-long quantum vibrations in boron arsenide, where optical phonons can persist nearly 10 times longer than in typical materials. The work was published in Physical Review Letters and is described as highlighting a new pathway for controlling heat and information at the quantum level.
The corresponding 2026 Physical Review Letters paper (Tong Lin et al., DOI 10.1103/qysd-d6rn) reports a record-high, isotope-purity-limited phonon coherence with a quality factor above 3.7×10³ for >98% enriched ¹¹BAs below 100 K, and finds that defect scattering contributes negligibly to optical-phonon linewidth compared with isotope scattering in the as-synthesized crystals.
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Source notes & attribution
- https://rexresearch.com/BoronArsenide/BoronArsenide.html