Editorial pubs.acs.org/acscombsci
Virtual Issue on Materials Genomics
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forward to continuing to bring the best of this rapidly advancing discipline to light, as there is a very great deal still to be done.
aterials science has undergone the fastest growth of all the physical sciences in terms of publications, according to ScienceWatch of Thomson-Reuters.a Much of the world, particularly Asia, is making massive investments in infrastructure to enable the development of new materials with applications in energy, medicine, structural materials and composites, and many others. Empirical screening of combinations of materials is still a widely used approach for optimization of properties, but the discovery of new and unprecedented materials, and combinations of materials, could be accelerated through application of combinatorial approaches. A simple combination of three transition metals presents a difficult challenge to traditional experiment design: how can one find useful catalytic function when there are 8436 ternary combinations to consider, to say nothing of subtle variations in elemental ratios, oxidation states, phases, and sample properties (thickness, morphology)? Sophisticated combinatorial approaches enable high-throughput and incisive exploration of a space of variables that would otherwise be impossible to screen in any meaningful way. The title of this virtual issue, Materials Genomics, was chosen in allusion to the U.S. Materials Genome Initiative (https:// www.mgi.gov), which has placed a spotlight on the challenges and opportunities for the creation of novel materials for 21st century applications. “Genomics” here refers indirectly to the role of biological genomes, in the sense that functional materials are made by the information-rich assembly of building blocks, and in the hope that the correlation of function with composition can eventually be made and predicted with biological-level richness and precision. Materials genomics therefore comprises methods of synthesis, analysis, optimization, and computational prediction. In this virtual issue, we have collected 22 papers that represent the latest trends in materials genomics. The most established approach toward combinatorial materials development is the use of thin film deposition techniques that enable the production of multicomponent gradients that can be screened for properties, including electronic properties (energy storage applications), magnetism (for information storage, electric motors), light absorption (solar cells), and catalysis, among others. More recently, computational methods have reached the level where they can be applied toward virtual screening of new materials, to help lead experimentalists in the design, and hence discovery, of entirely new materials. The virtual issue also captures new approaches toward molecular, polymeric, and liquid crystalline materials, and morphologically complex nanoscale materials; this latter group represent new and creative ways to bring combinatorial “thinking” to areas outside of the more established realm of thin film deposition. It is hoped that readers will appreciate the articles in this virtual issue as examples of the great breadth and activity of materials research published in ACS journals. The intersection of new and useful chemistry with combinatorial methods of design and analysis allows investigators to cover a limitless range of chemical, property, and functional space. We look © 2015 American Chemical Society
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M. G. Finn, Editor-in-Chief, ACS Combinatorial Science Jillian M. Buriak, Editor-in-Chief, Chemistry of Materials
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Notes
Views expressed in this editorial are those of the authors and not necessarily the views of the ACS.
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ADDITIONAL NOTE ScienceWatch report on materials science: http:// sciencewatch.com/grr/materials-science-technology. a
Published: December 14, 2015 705
DOI: 10.1021/acscombsci.5b00177 ACS Comb. Sci. 2015, 17, 705−705
