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Materials Science
USA
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Materials Science

D-Index
150
Citations
111814
World Ranking
158
National Ranking
69

Physics

D-Index
150
Citations
111172
World Ranking
295
National Ranking
174

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Materials Science in United States Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Materials Science in United States Leader Award
  • 2022 - Research.com Materials Science in United States Leader Award
  • 2014 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 1999 - Fellow of American Physical Society (APS) Citation For studies of electronic materials in reduced dimensions
  • 1984 - Fellow of Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

Overview

Alex Zettl is affiliated with the University of California, Berkeley in the United States. Their research primarily focuses on materials science, physics and astronomy, and engineering. Within these broader fields, they have contributed extensively to subfields including materials chemistry, atomic and molecular physics and optics, electrical and electronic engineering, biomedical engineering, and electronic, optical, and magnetic materials.

The main topics of their work encompass graphene research and applications, 2D materials and applications, quantum and electron transport phenomena, topological materials and phenomena, molecular junctions and nanostructures, MXene and MAX phase materials, and advanced electron microscopy techniques and applications.

Alex Zettl has published frequently in several key venues, including:

  • arXiv (Cornell University)
  • Nano Letters
  • Nature Communications
  • ACS Nano
  • Nature Materials

Their recent papers include:

  • Ultralow contact resistance between semimetal and monolayer semiconductors, 2021, Nature
  • Imaging two-dimensional generalized Wigner crystals, 2021, Nature
  • Reversible disorder-order transitions in atomic crystal nucleation, 2021, Science
  • The ultrafast onset of exciton formation in 2D semiconductors, 2020, Nature Communications
  • Correlated interlayer exciton insulator in heterostructures of monolayer WSe2 and moiré WS2/WSe2, 2022, Nature Physics

Frequent collaborators in research have included Takashi Taniguchi, Kenji Watanabe, Michael F. Crommie, Feng Wang, and Salman Kahn.

Alex Zettl's work has been recognized through several fellowships, such as:

  • Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2014
  • Fellow of American Physical Society (APS), 1999 (Citation for studies of electronic materials in reduced dimensions)
  • Fellow of Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, 1984

Best Publications

  • Direct observation of a widely tunable bandgap in bilayer graphene

    Yuanbo Zhang;Tsung-Ta Tang;Tsung-Ta Tang;Caglar Girit;Zhao Hao

  • Extreme oxygen sensitivity of electronic properties of carbon nanotubes

    Philip G. Collins;Keith Bradley;Masa Ishigami;A. Zettl

  • Boron Nitride Nanotubes

    Nasreen G. Chopra;R. J. Luyken;K. Cherrey;Vincent Henry Crespi

  • Graphene plasmonics for tunable terahertz metamaterials

    Long Ju;Baisong Geng;Baisong Geng;Jason Horng;Caglar Girit

  • THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY OF SINGLE-WALLED CARBON NANOTUBES

    J. Hone;J. Hone;M. Whitney;M. Whitney;C. Piskoti;C. Piskoti;A. Zettl;A. Zettl

  • Strain-Induced Pseudo–Magnetic Fields Greater Than 300 Tesla in Graphene Nanobubbles

    N. Levy;S. A. Burke;K. L. Meaker;M. Panlasigui

  • Single-Electron Transport in Ropes of Carbon Nanotubes

    Marc Bockrath;David H. Cobden;Paul L. McEuen;Nasreen G. Chopra

  • Gate-Variable Optical Transitions in Graphene

    Feng Wang;Yuanbo Zhang;Chuanshan Tian;Caglar Girit

  • High-performance transition metal–doped Pt3Ni octahedra for oxygen reduction reaction

    Xiaoqing Huang;Zipeng Zhao;Liang Cao;Yu Chen

  • Low-Friction Nanoscale Linear Bearing Realized from Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes

    John Cumings;A. Zettl

  • Determination of the Local Chemical Structure of Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide

    Kris Erickson;Rolf Erni;Zonghoon Lee;Nasim Alem

  • Crossed Nanotube Junctions

    M. S. Fuhrer;J. Nygård;L. Shih;M. Forero

  • Direct Mechanical Measurement of the Tensile Strength and Elastic Modulus of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes

    BG Demczyk;YM Wang;J Cumings;M Hetman

  • Rotational actuators based on carbon nanotubes

    A. M. Fennimore;T. D. Yuzvinsky;Wei-Qiang Han;M. S. Fuhrer;M. S. Fuhrer

  • Graphene at the edge: stability and dynamics.

    Çağlar Ö. Girit;Çağlar Ö. Girit;Çağlar Ö. Girit;Jannik C. Meyer;Jannik C. Meyer;Jannik C. Meyer;Rolf Erni;Rolf Erni;Rolf Erni;Marta D. Rossell;Marta D. Rossell;Marta D. Rossell

  • Direct Imaging of Lattice Atoms and Topological Defects in Graphene Membranes

    Jannik C. Meyer;C. Kisielowski;R. Erni;Marta D. Rossell

  • Thermal conductivity of single-walled carbon nanotubes

    J. Hone;M. Whitney;A. Zettl

  • Solid state thermal rectifier

    Chih-Wei Chang;Arunava Majumdar;Alexander K. Zettl

  • Tunable Phonon Polaritons in Atomically Thin van der Waals Crystals of Boron Nitride

    S. Dai;Z. Fei;Q. Ma;A. S. Rodin

  • An atomic-resolution nanomechanical mass sensor.

    K. Jensen;K. Jensen;Kwanpyo Kim;Kwanpyo Kim;A. Zettl;A. Zettl

Frequent Co-Authors

Michael F. Crommie
Michael F. Crommie University of California, Berkeley
Marvin L. Cohen
Marvin L. Cohen University of California, Berkeley
Feng Wang
Feng Wang University of California, Berkeley
Steven G. Louie
Steven G. Louie University of California, Berkeley
Shaul Aloni
Shaul Aloni Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Kenji Watanabe
Kenji Watanabe National Institute for Materials Science
Takashi Taniguchi
Takashi Taniguchi National Institute for Materials Science
Vincent H. Crespi
Vincent H. Crespi Pennsylvania State University
Michael S. Fuhrer
Michael S. Fuhrer Monash University
James Hone
James Hone Columbia University

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