Author: Taksh Patel | Major: Physics | Semester: Spring 2025
Presenting my research on topological defects in Janus bilayers at Ferro2025!
Hi everyone! My name is Taksh Patel, and I am currently a second-year undergraduate student majoring in physics at the University of Arkansas. The research I have been doing for the past year now focuses on finding topological defects—tiny magnetic structures— in materials to improve computing efficiency. By using these topological defects, we can increase computing efficiency by 100 to 1,000 times while still making our devices smaller.
Recently, I attended one of the most important conferences in my research field of Ferroelectrics – The Fundamental Physics of Ferroelectrics and Related Materials 2025. This workshop has been going on for nearly 36 years now and has seen many scientific breakthroughs. The work presented at this conference has been revolutionary for scientific research and the field of ferroelectrics, ferromagnetism, etc. This year, Ferro2025 (short name for the conference) was held in Annapolis, Maryland from February 2nd to February 5th. I attended the conference with others from my research group to present the work I have been doing with topological defects.
Presenting My Research to the Experts
Attending the conference was a fantastic experience for me, both personally and professionally. The conference gave me a platform to present my research, in the form of a poster, among leading researchers in the field of ferroelectrics. While presenting my poster, many researchers provided valuable feedback, suggesting using different computational methods and software tools that could make my calculations much faster. Initially, I wasn’t quite sure if their suggestions would be effective, but as they provided more details, I started seeing how their suggestions could make a big difference in my study. It helped me see that feedback is just as important as reading research papers, sometimes great ideas aren’t always written down.
Reconnecting and Expanding My Network
One of the best parts of the conference was reconnecting with people I had met last year at Ferro2024. It was great to see familiar faces, catch up, and hear about the new projects they were working on. But I also had the chance to meet many new scientists. I still remember arriving an hour late to the reception because of our flights and just being nervous walking in and recognizing many leading researchers in our field. These were people whose papers I had read a year ago and studied their works to improve my own research. It was very nerve-racking at first, but by the end of the conference, I was casually talking with them, cracking jokes, and talking about everything but physics.
Professional Growth and Lessons Learned
I’ve always found it difficult to explain complex ideas to a general audience especially when it comes to research. So, when I found out that I got accepted to present at the conference, I was nervous about presenting my work to a general audience-some who specialize in my field and others who had never heard of topological defects before. This conference really pushed me to make sure everyone understood the research I was doing and helped me develop a vital skill of breaking down complex ideas into clear ones for a general audience.
The conference also gave me a broader perspective on physics as a field. A lot of scientists from the conference weren’t from the US. They were from France, Spain, Italy, Japan, South Korea, and the list goes on. By meeting many scientists from various backgrounds and cultures, I saw that research isn’t about individual projects, its more about global collaboration, where scientists across the world come together to push the limits of innovation and scientific discovery. I realized that even the smallest of breakthroughs are results of years of collaboration from people across the world.
Advice for Future Students
The one piece of advice I would give future students about this conference or anything else like this in your own field: take it. I was so nervous and worried about attending this conference. I was anxious about getting everything done, making sure my presentation was good, etc. However, it was so worth it! Take opportunities like this to go outside of Arkansas to grow as a researcher, meet remarkable people, and make invaluable connections. Never be afraid to introduce yourself, try to talk to everyone. You never know who will give you great advice to take your research/work to the next level.
What’s Next?
I think it’s time to finish up the project soon. I have attended Ferro2024 and Ferro2025 now, and I would like to finish up my research project and try to get it published. Conferences like Ferro help me see why I chose to be a physicist; it gives me a sense of belonging and reminds me of what I’ve worked towards and inspire me to keep pushing forward.