https://phys.org/physics-news/ en-us The latest news in physics, materials science, quantum physics, optics and photonics, superconductivity science and technology. Updated Daily. One of the greatest problems in modern physics is to reconcile the enormous difference between the energy carried by random fluctuations in the vacuum of space, and the dark energy driving the universe's expansion. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-elucidate-dark-energy.html General Physics Wed, 06 Mar 2024 16:02:03 EST news628963321 The idea of objects seamlessly disappearing, not just in controlled laboratory environments but also in real-world scenarios, has long captured the popular imagination. This concept epitomizes the trajectory of human civilization, from primitive camouflage techniques to the sophisticated metamaterial-based cloaks of today. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-drone-invisibility-autonomous-sea-air.html General Physics Optics & Photonics Wed, 06 Mar 2024 12:47:03 EST news628951621 A research team led by the Paul Scherrer Institute has spectroscopically observed the fractionalization of electronic charge in an iron-based metallic ferromagnet. Experimental observation of the phenomenon is not only of fundamental importance. Since it appears in an alloy of common metals at accessible temperatures, it holds potential for future exploitation in electronic devices. The discovery is published in the journal Nature. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-weird-electron-behavior-weirder-fractionalization.html Condensed Matter Quantum Physics Wed, 06 Mar 2024 12:29:06 EST news628950541 Two physicists at the University of Konstanz are developing a method that could enable the stable exchange of information in quantum computers. In the leading role: photons that make quantum bits "fly." https://phys.org/news/2024-03-photons-quantum-bits-fly-stable.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Wed, 06 Mar 2024 11:47:03 EST news628948021 Stanford researchers have unveiled a new type of frequency comb, a high-precision measurement device, that is innovatively small, ultra-energy efficient, and exceptionally accurate. With continued development, this breakthrough "microcomb"—which is detailed in a study published March 7 in Nature—could be the basis for mass-market adoption of the devices in everyday electronics. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-ruler-enable-personal-devices.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 06 Mar 2024 11:00:01 EST news628942539 A group of Tohoku University researchers has developed a theoretical model for a high-performance spin wave reservoir computing (RC) that utilizes spintronics technology. The breakthrough moves scientists closer to realizing energy-efficient, nanoscale computing with unparalleled computational power. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-giant-neuromorphic-devices-high-reservoir.html Condensed Matter Wed, 06 Mar 2024 10:07:33 EST news628942051 A research team affiliated with UNIST has unveiled for the first time a new principle of motion in the microworld, where objects can move in a directed manner simply by changing their sizes periodically within a substance known as liquid crystal. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-uncover-principle-motion-liquid-crystals.html Soft Matter Wed, 06 Mar 2024 08:52:02 EST news628937521 Imagine tiny magnets powering our world, silently switching energy on and off in phones, cars, and even power grids. These unsung heroes are called soft magnetic materials. However, as devices become faster and more efficient, traditional materials struggle to handle the high frequencies needed by modern devices. Enter ASMCs, the new kids on the block. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-soft-magnetic-materials-high-frequency.html Condensed Matter Soft Matter Tue, 05 Mar 2024 16:53:03 EST news628879982 The many properties of light allow it to be manipulated and used for applications that range from very sensitive measurements to communications and intelligent ways to interrogate objects. A compelling degree of freedom is the spatial pattern, called structured light, which can resemble shapes such as donuts and flower petals. For instance, patterns with different numbers of petals can represent letters of the alphabet, and when observed on the other side, deliver the message. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-method-distortion.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 05 Mar 2024 14:23:02 EST news628870981 For more than a decade it has been possible for physicists to accurately measure the location of individual atoms to a precision smaller than one-thousandth of a millimeter using a special type of microscope. However, this method has so far only provided the x and y coordinates. Information on the vertical position of the atom is lacking. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-method-3d-position-individual-atoms.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Tue, 05 Mar 2024 12:01:04 EST news628862462 Scientists will work to channel the huge emerging power of quantum computers for the common good at a new institute that opened in Geneva on Tuesday, its founders said. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-scientists-hub-channel-quantum-power.html Quantum Physics Tue, 05 Mar 2024 10:37:14 EST news628857420 In the Japanese art of Kintsugi, an artist takes the broken shards of a bowl and fuses them back together with gold to make a final product more beautiful than the original. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-fusion-reaction-weaknesses-strengths.html Condensed Matter Plasma Physics Tue, 05 Mar 2024 10:28:49 EST news628856926 With time scheduled to use a certain beamline at the National Synchrotron Light Source-II (NSLS-II), scientists from NSLS-II and their partner institutions faced a challenge. They planned on researching a special type of region in magnetic materials that could be useful for next-generation computers. Regions in magnetic materials—called magnetic domains—determine a material's magnetic properties. The scientists wanted to study how these magnetic domains changed over time under the influence of an outside magnetic field. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-scientists-ability-insights-magnetism.html Condensed Matter Tue, 05 Mar 2024 09:51:44 EST news628854699 Universal behavior is a central property of phase transitions, which can be seen, for example, in magnets that are no longer magnetic above a certain temperature. A team of researchers from Kaiserslautern, Berlin and Hainan, China, has succeeded for the first time in observing such universal behavior in the temporal development of an open quantum system, a single cesium atom in a bath of rubidium atoms. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-quantum-universal-behavior.html Quantum Physics Tue, 05 Mar 2024 09:32:03 EST news628853521 In work published in Physical Review Letters researchers at Osaka University's Institute of Scientific and Industrial Research (SANKEN) used "the shortcuts to the adiabaticity (STA)" method to greatly speed-up the adiabatic evolution of spin qubits. The spin flip fidelity after pulse optimization can be as high as 97.8% in GaAs quantum dots. This work may be applicable to other adiabatic passage and may be useful for fast and high-fidelity quantum control. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-shortcut-success-fast-robust-quantum.html Condensed Matter Quantum Physics Tue, 05 Mar 2024 09:06:03 EST news628851962 High-energy neutrinos are extremely rare particles that have so far proved very difficult to detect. Fluxes of these rare particles were first detected by the IceCube Collaboration back in 2013. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-atlas-detector-flux-high-energy.html General Physics Tue, 05 Mar 2024 07:30:01 EST news628766453 Researchers have developed a new way to control and manipulate optical signals by embedding a liquid crystal layer into waveguides created with direct laser writing. The new devices enable electro-optical control of polarization, which could open new possibilities for chip-based devices and complex photonic circuits based on femtosecond-written waveguides. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-liquid-crystals-polarization-laser-written.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 17:43:03 EST news628796581 Plant vascular circulation, ion channels, our own lymphatic network, and many energy harvesting systems rely on the transport of dissolved salt solutions through tortuous conduits. These solutions, or electrolytes, maintain a positive or negative charge that's vital to how the system functions. However, this charge balance depends on the properties of the channel that contains the fluid. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-electrolyte-neutrality.html General Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 17:05:03 EST news628794302 A team of researchers led by the University of Massachusetts Amherst has recently found an exception to the 200-year-old law, known as Fourier's Law, that governs how heat diffuses through solid materials. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-exception-year-scientific-law.html General Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 16:57:03 EST news628793821 A research group led by Prof. Yang Yong from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has revealed the role of neighboring adsorbate and quantum tunneling in the diffusion of hydrogen on a graphene surface, which opens a possible way for ultrahigh precision measurement based on atomic systems, in particular, exploring the existence of a minimum length. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-scientists-reveal-role-neighboring-adsorbates.html Quantum Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 14:45:28 EST news628785926 During the manufacturing process, many medical devices or equipment for use on humans must be sterilized according to recognized standards. This includes gowns, surgical drapes, syringes and implantable medical devices. In fact, the United States has a huge medical device sterilization industry, regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The industry is expected to grow considerably in the coming years. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-electron-sterilize-medical-equipment.html General Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 14:40:37 EST news628785627 The LHCb collaboration recently reported on the arXiv preprint server the first observation of the decay of the Bc+ meson (composed of two heavy quarks, b and c) into a J/ψ charm-anticharm quark bound state and a pair of pions, π+π0. The decay process shows a contribution from an intermediate particle, a ρ+ meson that forms for a brief moment and then decays into the π+π0 pair. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-lhcb-decay-mode-charmed-beauty.html General Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 13:27:50 EST news628781268 In Nature Physics, the LSU Quantum Photonics Group offers fresh insights into the fundamental traits of surface plasmons, challenging the existing understanding. Based on experimental and theoretical investigations conducted in Associate Professor Omar Magaña-Loaiza's laboratory, these novel findings mark a significant advancement in quantum plasmonics, possibly the most noteworthy in the past decade. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-multiparticle-nanostructures-quantum-technologies.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 12:00:01 EST news628775481 In the predawn hours of Sept. 5, 2021, engineers achieved a major milestone in the labs of MIT's Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC), when a new type of magnet, made from high-temperature superconducting material, achieved a world-record magnetic field strength of 20 tesla for a large-scale magnet. That's the intensity needed to build a fusion power plant that is expected to produce a net output of power and potentially usher in an era of virtually limitless power production. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-high-temperature-superconducting-magnets-ready.html Superconductivity Plasma Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 11:52:12 EST news628775519 Robots and cameras of the future could be made of liquid crystals, thanks to a new discovery that significantly expands the potential of the chemicals already common in computer displays and digital watches. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-key-future-robots-liquid-crystals.html Condensed Matter Soft Matter Mon, 04 Mar 2024 11:50:38 EST news628775434 Just over a week ago, European physicists announced they had measured the strength of gravity on the smallest scale ever. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-gravity-kitchen-table-tiny-big.html General Physics Quantum Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 11:10:01 EST news628772387 Falling from the tip of a brush suspended in mid-air, an ink droplet touches a painted surface and blossoms into a masterpiece of ever-changing beauty. It weaves a tapestry of intricate, evolving patterns. Some of them resemble branching snowflakes, thunderbolts or neurons, whispering the unique expression of the artist's vision. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-ink-physics.html Soft Matter Mon, 04 Mar 2024 10:15:12 EST news628769708 Stimulated Raman scattering, observed first in 1962, has become a versatile tool in diverse fields such as biological imaging, environmental gas sensing, materials characterization, and molecular dynamics tracking. The choice of laser sources for exciting molecules or materials is critical, as it determines spectral resolution and the approach to obtain the Raman spectrum. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-hyper-spectral-resolution-raman-spectroscopy.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 09:53:21 EST news628768398 Quantum sensor technology promises even more precise measurements of physical quantities. A team led by Christian Roos at the University of Innsbruck has now compared the signals of up to 91 quantum sensors with one another and thus successfully eliminated the noise caused by interactions with the environment. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-spectroscopy-network-quantum-sensors-boosts.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 09:41:12 EST news628767669 Most people know about solids, liquids, and gases as the main three states of matter, but a fourth state of matter exists as well. Plasma—also known as ionized gas—is the most abundant, observable form of matter in our universe, found in the sun and other celestial bodies. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-plasma-oscillations-propel-breakthroughs-fusion.html Plasma Physics Mon, 04 Mar 2024 08:48:32 EST news628764503