Abstract
For over a century, physicists have dreamed of achieving room-temperature superconductivity—a state where electricity flows without resistance and magnetic fields are expelled. One of the most promising paths to realizing this dream lies in hydrogen, the simplest and most abundant element in the universe. Theoretical predictions long suggested that hydrogen in its solid phase, when subjected to extreme pressures, would transform into a metallic state and exhibit high-temperature superconductivity. However, for decades, the required pressures remained far beyond experimental reach.
Recently, breakthrough experiments have begun to provide evidence that solid hydrogen becomes metallic around 400–500 GPa, though the nature of this metallization remains mysterious. Meanwhile, researchers have discovered a more accessible route: incorporating hydrogen into other elements to form hydride compounds. These materials have already shattered superconducting temperature records, with sulfur hydride reaching 200 K in 2015 and lanthanum hydride surpassing 250 K in 2019—both at significantly lower pressures than pure hydrogen.
In this talk, I will explore the latest advances in high-pressure hydrogen and hydride superconductors, the challenges in explaining metallic hydrogen, and the strategies guiding the search for superconductors that operate at room temperature and, ultimately, at practical pressures—an “ambient” superconductor. Could we be on the verge of a revolution in energy transmission, magnetic levitation, and quantum technology? The race for the ultimate superconductor is heating up, and hydrogen is at its core.
Bio
Dr. Mehmet Doğan is a computational materials physicist specializing in first-principles methods. His research focuses on quantum materials, low-dimensional systems, superconductors, and large finite systems, combining high-performance computing with scientific machine learning techniques.
He received his B.S. in Physics & Mathematics from Middle East Technical University and his Ph.D. in Physics from Yale University. He has worked as a researcher at UC Berkeley and UT Austin. Since 2025, he has been serving as an Assistant Professor of Physics at San Diego State University.
