Physics Under Coupled Extremes

Materials are frequently exposed to extreme conditions simultaneously, including radiation, high and low temperatures, pressure, stress, electromagnetic fields, and chemically reactive environments. Under these conditions, material response is governed by the interaction of concurrent drivers, often leading to behavior that differs from that observed under individual stimuli. This Special Topic focuses on the fundamental physics of materials exposed to combined extreme conditions, with emphasis on how interactions between different fields influence defect processes, transport, phase stability, structural and electronic phase transformations, magnetism, and mechanical response across a wide range of material systems. Contributions spanning experimental, computational, and theoretical approaches are welcome, particularly those that address coupled effects across relevant length and time scales. Applications include nuclear fusion and fission, Earth and planetary interiors, hypervelocity impacts and meteorites, superconductivity, semiconductors, information and energy storage including superionic materials, multiferroics, heavy fermions, ceramics, and ultra-hard materials.