About
I am a tenure-track Assistant Professor and the director of the Advanced Nanoelectronics & Nanostructures Laboratory (ANNLab) in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Arizona, with courtesy appointments in the Department of Physics and the School of Electrical, Computing, and Software Engineering. We design, build and characterize nanoelectronic devices based on low-dimensional semiconductors and quantum materials, including atomically precise 1D graphene nanoribbons and 2D materials, for computing and sensing. We also develop topological surface acoustic wave devices for next-generation wireless communication.
Honors
- Craig M. Berge Faculty Fellow
- Center for Semiconductor Manufacturing Fellow
- Peterson Family Outstanding Early Career Faculty
- Excellence at the Student Interface Award
Profile
Recent News
October 2026Prof. Mutlu was featured on Arizona Science (AZPM, NPR 89.1) in the episode “Exploring Advanced Nanoelectronics.”
October 2026Our team received a 3-year Office of Naval Research (ONR) grant, with Prof. Mutlu as lead investigator, for nanoelectronics research.
October 2026Prof. Mutlu leads the University of Arizona part of the NAU-led Intel Scholarship & Fellowship Program, supporting six master’s scholars.
September 2026Our lab joins the University of Arizona REPLIQA team with Google Quantum AI to develop nanosensors.
Research
Nanosensors
We develop new types of nanosensors built from low-dimensional materials for extreme environments and biological sensing.
Nanoribbon Transistors
We grow atomically precise graphene nanoribbons, integrate them into transistors, and study their electronic transport and device challenges.
Surface Acoustic Wave Devices
We design and study surface acoustic wave devices, working toward topological acoustics for future advanced wireless communication.
Recent Publications (Full list)
[ACS AMI]Electrical and Structural Response of Nine-Atom-Wide Armchair Graphene Nanoribbon Transistors to Gamma Irradiation PDF
K. Yumigeta, M. Yusufoglu, J. G. Federice, E. T. Hughes, A. M. Degirmenci, J. T. Njardarson, K. Simmons-Potter, B. G. Potter, Z. Mutlu
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2026 Supplementary Front Cover
[Phys. Rev. Applied]Composite Superlattice Radio-Frequency Surface-Acoustic-Wave Devices PDF
F. Najmi, H. Yawit, W. Takeda, A. Basu, S. Biswas, Z. Mutlu, P. Lucas, K. Muralidharan, A. Alù, K. Runge, P. A. Deymier
Physical Review Applied, 2026
[Adv. Mater. Interfaces]Scalable Etch-Free Transfer of Low-Dimensional Materials from Metal Films to Diverse Substrates PDF
K. Yumigeta, M. Yusufoglu, M. Sarker, R. Raj, F. Daluisio, R. Holloway, H. Yawit, T. Sweepe, J. Battaglia, S. Janssen, A. C. Welch, P. DiPasquale, K. A. Mkhoyan, A. Sinitskii, Z. Mutlu
Advanced Materials Interfaces, 2026
[COPR’25]The Effect of Chalcopyrite Composition on Semiconducting Properties PDF
S. Patterson, J. Battaglia, A. Rieffer, Z. Mutlu, A. Wessman, I. Barton
12th International Copper Conference (COPR 2025), Springer, 2025
[COPR’25]The Effect of Chalcopyrite Composition on Semiconducting Properties PDF
S. Patterson, J. Battaglia, A. Rieffer, Z. Mutlu, A. Wessman, I. Barton
12th International Copper Conference (COPR 2025), Springer, 2025
[APL]Schottky Barrier Formation and Band Realignment of Rare-Earth Tritelluride Charge Density Wave Material–Semiconductor Interfaces PDF
K. Yumigeta, J. Kopaczek, R. Banerjee, S. T. R. Moosavy, A. Yarra, B. Povilus, H. Ruddick, R. Sailus, M. Kumar, S. Lakhavade, Y. Ou, Z. Mutlu, S. A. Tongay
Applied Physics Letters, 2025
[ACS Nano]Coupling of Nondegenerate Topological Modes in Nitrogen Core-Doped Graphene Nanoribbons PDF
P. H. Jacobse, M. Pizzochero, E. C. H. Wen, G. Borin Barin, X. Li, Z. Mutlu, K. Müllen, E. Kaxiras, M. F. Crommie, F. R. Fischer
ACS Nano, 2025
[ACS Nano]Atomically Precise Graphene Nanoribbon Transistors with Long-Term Stability and Reliability PDF
C. Dinh, M. Yusufoglu, K. Yumigeta, A. Kinikar, T. Sweepe, Z. Zeszut, Y.-J. Chang, C. Copic, S. Janssen, R. Holloway, J. Battaglia, A. Kuntubek, F. Zahin, Y. C. Lin, W. G. Vandenberghe, B. J. LeRoy, K. Müllen, R. Fasel, G. Borin Barin, Z. Mutlu
ACS Nano, 2024
[APR]Contact Engineering for Graphene Nanoribbon Devices PDF
Z. Mutlu, C. Dinh, G. Borin Barin, P. H. Jacobse, A. Kumar, D. Polley, H. Singh, Z. Wang, Y. C. Lin, A. Schwartzberg, M. F. Crommie, K. Müllen, P. Ruffieux, R. Fasel, J. Bokor
Applied Physics Reviews, 2023 Featured Article
[Carbon]Scaling and Statistics of Bottom-Up Synthesized Armchair Graphene Nanoribbon Transistors PDF
Y. C. Lin, Z. Mutlu, G. Borin Barin, Y. Hong, J. P. Llinas, A. Narita, H. Singh, K. Müllen, P. Ruffieux, R. Fasel, J. Bokor
Carbon, 2023
Selected Professional Activities
Member, Early Career Advisory Board2026 – Present
RSC Applied Interfaces (Royal Society of Chemistry)
Member, Early Career Editorial Board2026 – Present
Graphene and 2D Materials (Springer Nature)
Contributing Author, SRC Microelectronics and Advanced Packaging Technologies (MAPT) Roadmap 2.02025
Digital Processing and Workforce Development chapters, Semiconductor Research Corporation
General Chair, FUSENANO National Workshop2024
Molecules to Systems: The Future of Semiconductors with 1D and 2D Nanomaterials, Tucson, AZ
Work Experience
University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
Assistant Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering (2022 – Present)
Assistant Professor (by courtesy), Department of Physics (2024 – Present)
Assistant Professor (by courtesy), School of Electrical, Computing, and Software Engineering (2024 – Present)
University of California, Berkeley, CA
Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences (2018 – 2022)
Affiliate, Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (2018 – 2022)
University of California, Riverside, CA
Assistant Project Scientist, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (2017 – 2018)
Postdoctoral Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering (2016 – 2017)
Education
Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Riverside, CA
2011 – 2016Advisor: Cengiz S. Ozkan
Dissertation: “Crystal Growth and Phase Engineering of Two-Dimensional Metal Chalcogenides”
M.S. in Physics, Selçuk University, Konya, Turkey
2007 – 2009Advisor: Oğuz Doğan
Thesis: “Fabrication of YBCO Superconducting Thin Film on Si Substrate and Investigation of the Film Properties”
B.S. in Physics Education, Selçuk University, Konya, Turkey
2002 – 2007