Researchers have created a cutting-edge catalyst that turns CO2 into methanol more efficiently than ever before. Instead of using clumps of metal atoms, they engineered a system where each single indium atom actively drives the… Read More »Scientists turn CO2 into fuel using breakthrough single-atom catalyst
MIT physicists have built a powerful new microscope that uses terahertz light to uncover hidden quantum motions inside superconductors. By compressing this normally unwieldy light into a tiny region, they were able to observe electrons… Read More »MIT scientists finally see hidden quantum “jiggling” inside superconductors
Physicists at UC Santa Barbara have uncovered a new way to manipulate unusual magnetic states by exploiting “frustration” inside a crystal’s atomic structure. The team discovered a rare system where two different kinds of frustration—magnetic… Read More »A strange new quantum state appears when atoms get “frustrated”
More than a century before quantum mechanics was born, Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton stumbled onto an idea that would quietly foreshadow one of the deepest truths in physics. While studying the paths of light… Read More »The 19th-century mathematical clue that led to quantum mechanics
Physicists have long struggled to unite quantum mechanics—the theory governing tiny particles—with Einstein’s theory of gravity, which explains the behavior of stars, planets, and the structure of the universe. Researchers at TU Wien have now… Read More »Particles may not follow Einstein’s paths after all
Engineers have discovered an unexpected link between two very different realms of physics: the behavior of electrons in graphene and magnetic waves in specially engineered materials. By designing a thin magnetic film with a hexagonal… Read More »Engineers make magnets behave like graphene
Solid-state batteries could be safer and more energy-dense than today’s lithium-ion technology, but finding materials that allow ions to move quickly through solid electrolytes has been difficult. Researchers developed a machine learning pipeline that predicts… Read More »AI discovers the hidden signal of liquid-like ion flow in solid-state batteries
Electrons in solar materials can be launched across molecules almost as fast as nature allows, thanks to tiny atomic vibrations acting like a “molecular catapult.” In experiments lasting just 18 femtoseconds, researchers at the University… Read More »Electrons catapult across solar materials in just 18 femtoseconds
A new ultrathin photodetector from Duke University can sense light across the entire electromagnetic spectrum and generate a signal in just 125 picoseconds, making it the fastest pyroelectric detector ever built. The breakthrough could power… Read More »Record-breaking photodetector captures light in just 125 picoseconds
Twisting atomically thin magnetic layers does more than reshape their electronics—it can create giant, topological magnetic textures. In chromium triiodide, researchers observed skyrmion-like patterns stretching far beyond the expected moiré scale, reaching hundreds of nanometers.… Read More »A tiny twist creates giant magnetic skyrmions in 2D crystals