Physics

Dec 6th, 2023 - A quantum computer built by QuEra contains the largest ever number of "logical quantum bits", which can be used for error-free calculations Another quantum computing record has been broken. A team has built a quantum computer with the largest ever number of so-called logical qubits, or quantum bits. Unlike standard qubits, logical qubits are better able to carry out computations unmarred by errors, making the new device a potentially important step towards practical quantum computing . How ... [Read More]

Dec 6th, 2023 - In a new Nature paper, two nanotechnology approaches converge by employing a new generation of fabrication technology. It combines the scalability of semiconductor technology with the atomic dimensions enabled by self-assembly. A central goal in quantum optics and photonics is to increase the strength of the interaction between light and matter to produce, e.g., better photodetectors or quantum light sources. The best way to do that is to use optical resonators that store light for a long time, ... [Read More]

Dec 6th, 2023 - High-energy neutron scattering is a powerful tool in spectroscopy, allowing researchers to probe the physical and chemical properties of many different materials. It is especially well suited for studying the dense and complex structures of lanthanide-iron intermetallic compounds , such as the celebrated Nd 2 Fe 14 B. So far, however, researchers still haven't figured out how to probe the material's valuable magnetic properties using neutron scattering. In a new study published in The European ... [Read More]

Dec 5th, 2023 - Can we turn back time? Ask a savvy physicist, and the answer will be "it depends." Schemes for retrograde time travel abound but usually involve irreconcilable paradoxes and rely on outlandish theoretical constructs such as wormholes (which may not actually exist). Yet when it comes to simply turning back the clock—akin to stirring a scrambled raw egg and seeing the yolk and white reseparate—a rich and growing subfield of wave physics shows that such "time reversal" is possible. ... [Read More]

Dec 5th, 2023 - This September, a group of researchers at CERN finally, after years of engineering an extraordinarily precise experiment, managed to create and carefully capture a sample of antihydrogen (the antimatter version of hydrogen). They held the sample in a magnetic field containment so precarious that any slight misalignment would cause it to immediately annihilate against the walls of its container. And then they dropped it. The ALPHA-g experiment was designed to answer the question of just how ... [Read More]

Dec 5th, 2023 - Researchers have resolved a long-standing debate surrounding laser additive manufacturing processes with a pioneering approach to defect detection. Researchers from EPFL have resolved a long-standing debate surrounding laser additive manufacturing processes with a pioneering approach to defect detection. The progression of laser additive manufacturing -- which involves 3D printing of metallic objects using powders and lasers -- has often been hindered by unexpected defects. Traditional ... [Read More]

Dec 5th, 2023 - This surprising result is important for understanding unconventional superconductors and other materials where electrons band together to act collectively. Long before researchers discovered the electron and its role in generating electrical current, they knew about electricity and were exploring its potential. One thing they learned early on was that metals were great conductors of both electricity and heat. Discovery of the Wiedemann-Franz Law In 1853, two scientists showed that those two ... [Read More]

Dec 4th, 2023 - Graphene, that is extremely thin carbon, is considered a true miracle material. An international research team has now added another facet to its diverse properties with new experiments: Experts fired short terahertz pulses at micrometer-sized discs of graphene, which briefly turned these minuscule objects into surprisingly strong magnets. This discovery may prove useful for developing future magnetic switches and storage devices. Graphene, that is extremely thin carbon, is considered a true ... [Read More]

Dec 4th, 2023 - Just like there are waves in the ocean, waves can also occur in an electrically charged gas called a plasma, made up of electrons and ions. In the ocean, people surf by riding their boards at nearly the same speed as the waves. This matching condition, called resonance, allows the wave to efficiently push the surfer by exchanging energy. In plasmas, the surfers can be very fast ions , which can occur in fusion devices as a result of fusion reactions or other processes used to heat the plasma . ... [Read More]

Dec 4th, 2023 - Physicists have developed a technique with the potential to enhance optical data storage capacity in diamonds. This is possible by multiplexing the storage in the spectral domain. Physicists at The City College of New York have developed a technique with the potential to enhance optical data storage capacity in diamonds. This is possible by multiplexing the storage in the spectral domain. The research by Richard G. Monge and Tom Delord members of the Meriles Group in CCNY's Division of Science, ... [Read More]

Dec 4th, 2023 - TOPICS: A radical theory that consistently unifies gravity and quantum mechanics while preserving Einstein's classical concept of spacetime is announced today in two papers published simultaneously by UCL (University College London) physicists. Modern physics is founded upon two pillars: quantum theory on the one hand, which governs the smallest particles in the universe, and Einstein's theory of general relativity on the other, which explains gravity through the bending of spacetime. But these ... [Read More]

Dec 4th, 2023 - After a five-year pause, on the evening of 26 September, lead ions collided at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at an unprecedented high energy of 5.36 TeV per pair of nucleons (protons or neutrons) and a collision rate six times higher than before. The final lead-ion beam of this latest heavy-ion run was dumped early in the morning of 30 October, after a forced magnet "quench," carried out to better understand the amount of deposited energy at which the LHC superconducting magnets lose their ... [Read More]

Dec 4th, 2023 - Materials scientists mapped the structural features of a 2D ferroelectric material made of tin and selenium atoms using a new technique that can be applied to other 2D van der Waals ferroelectrics, unlocking their potential for use in electronics and other applications. The properties that make materials like semiconductors so sought after result from the way their atoms are connected, and insight into these atomic configurations can help scientists design new materials or use existing ... [Read More]

Dec 3rd, 2023 - A newly discovered trade-off in the way time-keeping devices operate on a fundamental level could set a hard limit on the performance of large-scale quantum computers , according to researchers from the Vienna University of Technology. While the issue isn't exactly pressing, our ability to grow systems based on quantum operations from backroom prototypes into practical number-crunching behemoths will depend on how well we can reliably dissect the days into ever finer portions. This is a feat ... [Read More]

Dec 2nd, 2023 - New research offers an innovative approach to model star-based elemental formation, improving our grasp of nuclear reactions in the cosmos. New research from North Carolina State University and Michigan State University opens a new avenue for modeling low-energy nuclear reactions, which are key to the formation of elements within stars. The research lays the groundwork for calculating how nucleons interact when the particles are electrically charged. Understanding Elemental Formation in Stars ... [Read More]

Dec 2nd, 2023 - Thought To Be Impossible – Scientists Uncover Hidden World Using Newly Found Properties of a Graphene-Like Material TOPICS: Researchers from EPFL and the University of Manchester have unlocked secrets of nanofluidics by utilizing a two-dimensional material and light. A breakthrough in nanofluidics is set to revolutionize our grasp of molecular dynamics at minuscule scales. Collaborative efforts from scientists at EPFL and the University of Manchester have uncovered a previously hidden ... [Read More]