Research offers insights into the metal-to-insulator transition without breaking symmetry

Metal-to-insulator transition—a process that turns materials from a conductor to an insulator—has been a crucial process behind microelectronic switches, nonvolatile memory, and neuromorphic computing materials. In many cases, this transition is accompanied by drastic changes in the electronic or structural symmetry of the material, which can bring about other unintended property changes to the material. It is therefore desired to realize such a transition without breaking the symmetry of the materials.