Super-cool materials send heat to space

Nature News highlights the work of Qiaoqiang Gan, PhD, associate professor of electrical engineering, in a feature story on “The super-cool materials that send heat to space.” The article notes that Gan partnered with researchers at other universities to develop a supercool thin film, containing polydimethylsiloxane, that stays colder than its surroundings even in direct sunlight. The material achieves this by emitting heat that can pass through the atmosphere into space. Gan is working to commercialize this discovery, which could be employed in a variety of technologies, including systems that help keep buildings cool, or devices that rely on water condensation to obtain clean water.