Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In the inaugural edition of “Soft Serve with Scientists,” MIT physicist Pablo Jarillo-Herrero ventures to explain his groundbreaking work in twistronics to Edgar B. Herwick III in the time it takes to finish a cone of soft serve. Jarillo-Herrero helped establish the field of twistronics, where ultra-thin materials are stacked and rotated at precise angles to change their physical properties.
Using graphene sheets just one atom thick, Jarillo-Herrero and his team discovered that by twisting the layers to a “magic angle,” they can make the graphene behave as a superconductor, an insulator, or even a magnet. This science could eventually lead to highly sensitive detectors for infrared, terahertz and microwave light, as well as hyper-efficient computing devices. But manufacturing at scale remains a major challenge.
0:17 Meet physicist Pablo Jarillo-Herrero
0:33 What is twistronics?
1:08 How twisting graphene changes matter
2:31 Discovering the 1.1-degree “magic angle”
3:31 Moiré patterns and “super atoms”
4:04 Potential uses and the challenge of scaling up
7:13 How the research began
7:40 A quantum inverse philosopher’s stone
8:20 The discovery that brought the team to tears
9:42 Searching for new forms of matter
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In the inaugural edition of “Soft Serve with Scientists,” MIT physicist Pablo Jarillo-Herrero ventures to explain his groundbreaking work in twistronics to Edgar B. Herwick III in the time it takes to finish a cone of soft serve. Jarillo-Herrero helped establish the field of twistronics, where ultra-thin materials are stacked and rotated at precise angles to change their physical properties.
Using graphene sheets just one atom thick, Jarillo-Herrero and his team discovered that by twisting the layers to a “magic angle,” they can make the graphene behave as a superconductor, an insulator, or even a magnet. This science could eventually lead to highly sensitive detectors for infrared, terahertz and microwave light, as well as hyper-efficient computing devices. But manufacturing at scale remains a major challenge.
0:17 Meet physicist Pablo Jarillo-Herrero
0:33 What is twistronics?
1:08 How twisting graphene changes matter
2:31 Discovering the 1.1-degree “magic angle”
3:31 Moiré patterns and “super atoms”
4:04 Potential uses and the challenge of scaling up
7:13 How the research began
7:40 A quantum inverse philosopher’s stone
8:20 The discovery that brought the team to tears
9:42 Searching for new forms of matter
GBH News wants to hear from YOU! We are conducting our annual audience survey 📝 bit.ly/3ZQXSQr. This will help us understand your interests and what you want to see more of from us. It only takes a few minutes, and we are grateful for your input. 🙌
GBH News is a premier source for in-depth local news and original story telling based in Boston, Massachusetts.
Subscribe to the GBH News YouTube channel: youtube.com/c/gbhnews?sub_confirmation=1
Subscribe to our GBH Daily newsletter at wgbh.org/daily?utm_Newsletter=GBH_Daily_YouTube_CTA
Follow GBH News on Instagram: instagram.com/gbhnews
Like GBH News on Facebook: facebook.com/gbhnews
Follow GBH News on X: twitter.com/GBHNews
Visit our website: wgbh.org/news
Support GBH and help shape a future where facts matter, stories unite us, and everyone has access to quality media. Join us. Fund the Future: bit.ly/FundtheFutureYT
