“The Axion insulator is a new quantum state with truly exciting quantum properties.” said Suyang Xu, an assistant professor of chemistry at Harvard and a lead author of the report. “For a long time, researchers have been searching for materials that can realize this state. Finally, we have found a good one!”

The work, published in the journal Nature, is believed to be the first experimental evidence of this type of quantum state and can one day help generate a magneto-electric effect that can lead to the next-generation of electronic devices, sensors, detectors and memory devices that use magnetic strips, such as credit cards. A full story can be found here.