MEchanism for LOw thermal conDuctivitY – MELODY

How low the thermal conductivity of a solid can be ? This question is of fundamental and technological interest. Designing materials with low thermal conductivity has become a crucial technological challenge for thermoelectric devices or thermal barrier applications. The MELODY project aims at solving this fundamental question and will provide new guidelines for the development of materials with low thermal conductivity.
In this project, we propose to take advantage of the coupling of phonons with magnetic degree of freedom in well-chosen samples (magnetic oxides and high-entropy oxides) to ultimately lower the thermal conductivity.
Through the combination of macroscopic probes (specific heat, thermal conductivity) and microscopic probes (inelastic neutron scattering) combined with first-principle theoretical calculations, we aim to identify the mechanisms that lead to their low thermal conductivity and optimize them to achieve the smallest possible thermal conductivity.
The MELODY project is formed by a consortium of four partners, all world experts in the fields of chemical synthesis, thermal transport, inelastic neutron scattering, and first-principal calculations. The combination of their expertise will open up a new approach to the engineering of low thermal conductors.