Physicists have discovered that hidden magnetic order plays a key role in the pseudogap, a puzzling state of matter that appears just before certain materials become superconductors. Using an ultra-cold quantum simulator, the team found… Read More »A hidden magnetic order could unlock superconductivity
When materials become just one atom thick, melting no longer follows the familiar rules. Instead of jumping straight from solid to liquid, an unusual in-between state emerges, where atomic positions loosen like a liquid but… Read More »A strange in-between state of matter is finally observed
Researchers have demonstrated that quantum entanglement can link atoms across space to improve measurement accuracy. By splitting an entangled group of atoms into separate clouds, they were able to measure electromagnetic fields more precisely than… Read More »Distant entangled atoms acting as one sensor deliver stunning precision
A long-standing law of thermodynamics turns out to have a loophole at the smallest scales. Researchers have shown that quantum engines made of correlated particles can exceed the traditional efficiency limit set by Carnot nearly… Read More »Physicists challenge a 200-year-old law of thermodynamics at the atomic scale
Scientists are learning how to temporarily reshape materials by nudging their internal quantum rhythms instead of blasting them with extreme lasers. By harnessing excitons, short-lived energy pairs that naturally form inside semiconductors, researchers can alter… Read More »Researchers unlocked a new shortcut to quantum materials
When quantum spins interact, they can produce collective behaviors that defy long-standing expectations. Researchers have now shown that the Kondo effect behaves very differently depending on spin size. In systems with small spins, it suppresses… Read More »A tiny spin change just flipped a famous quantum effect
As global energy demand surges—driven by AI-hungry data centers, advanced manufacturing, and electrified transportation—researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have unveiled a breakthrough that could help squeeze far more power from existing electricity supplies.… Read More »This tiny power module could change how the world uses energy
Physicists have long relied on the idea that electrons behave like tiny particles zipping through materials, even though quantum physics says their exact position is fundamentally uncertain. Now, researchers at TU Wien have discovered something… Read More »Electrons stop acting like particles—and physics still works
Florida State University scientists have engineered a new crystal that forces atomic magnets to swirl into complex, repeating patterns. The effect comes from mixing two nearly identical compounds whose mismatched structures create magnetic tension at… Read More »A new crystal makes magnetism twist in surprising ways
Einstein’s claim that the speed of light is constant has survived more than a century of scrutiny—but scientists are still daring to test it. Some theories of quantum gravity suggest light might behave slightly differently… Read More »Scientists tried to break Einstein’s speed of light rule