Rare Earth Element-Based Magnets: Science, and Supply Reliability and Sustainability in the 21st Century
Please join the Boston IEEE Reliability Chapter for the following Technical Presentation and annual year-end dinner honoring our past Chapter Chairs on December 10, 2025!
Abstract:
The United States remains critically dependent on foreign—particularly Chinese—sources for rare earth elements (REEs), which underpin a vast array of modern technologies. These materials are indispensable to defense platforms, renewable energy systems, electric vehicles, drones, robotics, medical diagnostics, telecommunications infrastructure, and consumer electronics.
Today, nearly 90% of U.S. critical materials are imported from Asia-Pacific suppliers, exposing the nation to significant risks, including price volatility, geopolitical leverage, and potential supply chain interruptions during periods of global or regional instability.
This presentation focuses on rare-earth-based permanent magnets—the highest-value use of REEs and the heart of many advanced STEM applications.
We explore three interconnected dimensions:
• REE Science and Technologies: the physics, chemistry, and materials engineering that enable world-class magnetic performance.
• Sustainability and Environmental Impact: mining, separation, processing, and the urgent need for greener, more efficient production pathways.
• Supply Reliability, Industrial Base, and Policy: current chokepoints, global competition, and U.S. national-security implications heading into 2026.
We further examine emerging strategies in domestic and allied sourcing, circular-economy approaches such as recycling and magnet-to-magnet recovery, and re-engineering components to reduce or diversify REE demand.
Finally, we outline actionable steps the global community can take to mitigate China’s overwhelming dominance in rare earths—strengthening supply chain resilience, promoting technological innovation, and ensuring secure access to the critical materials that power the 21st-century economy.
If attending in person, you must show a valid photo ID at the MIT LL gate, at 244 Wood St, Lexington, MA. State that you are attending the IEEE meeting in the Main Cafeteria.
Date and Time
Location
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- 244 Wood Street
- Lexington, Massachusetts
- United States 02420
- Building: Main Cafeteria
- Starts 03 December 2025 05:00 AM UTC
- Ends 10 December 2025 05:00 AM UTC
- No Admission Charge
Speakers
Vince Harris
Rare Earth Element-Based Magnets: Science, Supply and Sustainability in the 21st Century
Biography:
A former Branch Head at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, he led programs in magnetics, RF materials, and electromagnetic protection, contributing to platforms such as the DD-21 Zumwalt-class destroyer and F-35 Lightning II. He later founded high-tech ventures focused on magnetic components, supply-chain resilience, and national-security technologies.
Internationally recognized by ScholarGPS as the global leader in magnetoceramics; he has authored more than 450 publications, holds more than 20 patents and applications, and is an active Fellow of the APS, IEEE, AAAS, IoP, and NAI. As a Jefferson Science Fellow and Fulbright Fellow, he has contributed to U.S. critical-materials strategic policy and global rare-earth engagements.
Agenda
5:00 pm doors open, for networking. Arriving earlier is welcome.
5:30 pm: Dinner and refreshments are scheduled to arrive, while networking continues.
6:00 pm: Introduction to the presentation, followed by the formal presentation.
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