Layered semiconductor unlocks magnetic control of light emitted by quantum condensates
Quantum technologies are considered key technologies of the future. However, research in this field requires not only scientific expertise but sometimes also highly specialized la…
Gravity and light reveal how liquids turn into thin fibers
From spiders spinning their webs to the manufacturing of textiles, the formation of fibers from liquids plays an important role in both nature and industry. Yet accurately predict…
Liquid-crystal-like magnetism explains puzzling properties in a rare-earth compound
In some materials, physical properties don't emerge from their individual particles, but from the collective behavior of their quantum spins. Now, researchers led by Pengcheng Dai…
Light-driven method puts notoriously reactive hydrogen atoms to work for chemical synthesis
Hydrogen is the simplest element in the periodic table, consisting of just one proton and one electron. In chemistry, however, the smallest of atoms is anything but simple. First …
A trick from tardigrades could help human blood withstand freezing
Tardigrades survive conditions that would destroy most other living things: freezing, dehydration and the vacuum of space. Researchers even put tiny tattoos on them, and the anima…
Nickel catalyst unlocks hard-to-make β-amino alcohols
Many molecules in living organisms and pharmaceuticals share a structure called a β-amino alcohol, in which an amino group and a hydroxyl group sit on neighboring carbon atoms. Th…
Could grass become the clothes of the future?
Producing textile fibers from wood involves extracting cellulose from a structure that is tougher and more resistant than that of grass. But what if grass offered an easier—and po…
New electrode design breaks key barrier to greener ammonia production
A new approach to producing ammonia using renewable electricity has overcome a fundamental energy limitation of the technology, opening new possibilities for cleaner and potential…
Electronic stripes linked to unusual vortex states in a superconductor
Superconductors, materials that can carry electric current with an electrical resistance of zero, have proved to be promising for the development of various technologies, includin…
What pig hearts and a little noise can teach us about designing better soft valves
Some of the best engineers and inventors are copycats. They look at how the natural world solves complex problems and use those mechanisms as the basis for innovations. But Mother…
Nobel physics winner's pride at pioneering AI role
Francis Halzen, winner of the Nobel Prize in physics, spoke with pride on Wednesday about his early promotion of artificial intelligence in his research on neutrinos.
New polystyrene uses 50% plant-based material and breaks into fragments for potential recycling
Polystyrene is used in protective packaging for televisions and electronic devices, in decorative boards and baseboards for interior construction, and in petri dishes. It is one o…
Ultrashort laser pulses let new microscope map electron interactions across thin materials
A new type of advanced microscope (wide-field coherent multidimensional microscopy) has been developed. It uses a carefully designed sequence of ultrashort light pulses to study t…
Acoustic experiments confirm topology can persist at gapless critical points
Two studies on critical topology have recently been published in the journal Nature. These studies were led by the teams of Prof. Baile Zhang at Nanyang Technological University, …
Polymer coating tackles MXene's water stability challenge, boosting CO₂-to-methane production
A research team has developed a photocatalytic technology that improves the stability of MXene, an emerging material vulnerable to water, to efficiently convert carbon dioxide int…
Enzymes could unlock biological recycling of difficult plastic waste
They are durable, cheap and everyday life is now hardly imaginable without them: plastics. More then 400 million metric tons are produced every year. As a large proportion is only…
First observation of quantum spins shifting a centimeter-scale object in the lab
Modern technological breakthroughs like lasers, MRI scanners, semiconductors and quantum computers rest on the study of quantum mechanics. However, the field has predominantly foc…
One quantum material, two superconducting states: Stretching helps explain conflicting experiments
Unconventional superconductors can host unusual electronic states, but understanding what drives their superconductivity becomes difficult when different forms of order coexist. T…
Levitating glass sphere becomes entangled with light at room temperature
Today, many physicists are actively exploring how light could be used to link objects through quantum entanglement. By fully harnessing the effect, they hope to unlock a wide arra…
Quantum simulations suggest lithium isotopes could affect biological reactions differently
While lithium has been used as a first-line treatment for the long-term management of bipolar disorder for more than 70 years, scientists still do not fully understand how it prod…
The first stand-alone nuclear clock is ticking in Vienna
For decades, researchers around the world have been working toward this goal—and now major advances are following in rapid succession. Vienna is now home to the world's first nucl…
Uranium compound known since the 1960s reveals hidden spiral structure with unusual magnetic properties
A University of Texas at Dallas scientist and her colleagues have discovered an unusual atomic pattern in a uranium-based material that gives it a rare combination of magnetic pro…
Cricket's day-night pink ball not always so pretty
The pink ball was introduced for day-night matches over a decade ago, and in June this year the International Cricket Council (ICC) approved a trial of pink balls in Tests expecte…
Quantum computing shortcut makes particle collisions easier to simulate
Collisions between particles at high energies can sometimes produce new particles and shed light on interactions between the fundamental constituents of matter. Simulating these c…