https://phys.org/physics-news/physics en-us The latest news on physics, materials, nanotech, science and technology. Whenever light interacts with matter, light appears to slow down. This is not a new observation and standard wave mechanics can describe most of these daily phenomena. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-major-problems-physics.html General Physics Optics & Photonics Fri, 20 Oct 2023 09:45:40 EDT news617013937 Researchers at the Max-Born-Institute have now mapped the linear and nonlinear optical polaron response using ultrafast two-dimensional spectroscopy in the THz frequency range. As they discuss in the current issue of Physical Review Letters, multi-photon ionization of isopropanol molecules by a femtosecond pulse in the near-infrared generates free electrons and the resulting changes of the dielectric properties of the liquid are probed and/or manipulated in the THz frequency range. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-motions-electrons-solvent-molecules-polar.html General Physics Condensed Matter Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:12:56 EDT news616932772 The most comprehensive view of the history of the universe ever created has been produced by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU). The study also offers new ideas about how our universe may have started. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-view-universe.html General Physics Wed, 18 Oct 2023 13:19:10 EDT news616853948 One way physicists seek clues to unravel the mysteries of the universe is by smashing matter together and inspecting the debris. But these types of destructive experiments, while incredibly informative, have limits. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-technique-near-miss-particle-physics-tau.html General Physics Quantum Physics Wed, 18 Oct 2023 11:07:40 EDT news616846057 A team of physicists at the Technical University of Denmark has found the reason a spinning magnet can cause a secondary magnet to levitate without the need for stabilization. In their paper published in the journal Physical Review Applied, the group describes experiments they conducted to learn more about the phenomenon and what they learned from them. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-magnet-levitate.html General Physics Condensed Matter Mon, 16 Oct 2023 09:50:01 EDT news616668486 A team of atmospheric scientists, chemists and infectious disease specialists at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, working with colleagues from the Max Planck Institute for Dynamical Systems, the University of Denver, Georg August University and St. Petersburg State University, has embarked on an effort to collate publicly available information on droplet properties, such as the way they are distributed by size, their composition, and the ways they are emitted, as a means of helping to develop mitigation strategies for fighting infectious agents. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-collating-droplet-properties-localize-sources.html General Physics Fri, 13 Oct 2023 13:37:55 EDT news616423068 Electron microscopes provide unique vistas of nanoscale structures, but their resolution is limited by the mutual repulsion of electrons. Researchers in Göttingen have now succeeded in precisely measuring the influence of these interactions. They discovered an "energetic fingerprint" in which the distribution of the electrons' velocities is characteristic of their respective numbers. This finding has enabled the team to develop a method that could increase the performance of established electron microscopes and open up a new interface between electron microscopy and quantum technology. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-interplay-free-electrons-tailored-electron.html General Physics Quantum Physics Fri, 13 Oct 2023 09:56:24 EDT news616409782 Physicists have shown that simulating models of hypothetical time travel can solve experimental problems that appear impossible to solve using standard physics. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-simulations-scientific.html General Physics Quantum Physics Thu, 12 Oct 2023 12:19:18 EDT news616331937 The nuclear reactions that power stellar explosions involve short-lived nuclei that are hard to study in the laboratory. To solve this challenge, researchers used a novel technique that combines an Active Target Time Projection Chamber (AT-TPC) with a magnetic spectrometer. The work has been published in Physical Review Letters. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-method-nuclear-reactions-short-lived-isotopes.html General Physics Thu, 12 Oct 2023 11:01:25 EDT news616327283 The amount of power a microswimmer needs to move can now be determined more easily. Scientists from the department Living Matter Physics at the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization (MPI-DS) developed a general theorem to calculate the minimal energy required for propulsion. These insights allow a profound understanding for practical applications, such as targeted transport of molecules and substrates. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-theorem-fuel-economy-microswimmer.html General Physics Soft Matter Thu, 12 Oct 2023 09:43:02 EDT news616322581 Nuclear astrophysics studies the evolution of the elements in the universe since its creation. The astrophysical models rely on parameters that scientists deduce from laboratory measurements. Nuclear reactions play a crucial role inside stars. A team from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), together with researchers from Italy, Hungary and Scotland, has now reinvestigated one of the central reactions at the Dresden Felsenkeller accelerator with a surprising result, as reported in the journal Physical Review C. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-sun-slower-burn-in-phase-hydrogen.html General Physics Wed, 11 Oct 2023 09:53:29 EDT news616236805 If new particles are out there, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the ideal place to search for them. The theory of supersymmetry suggests that a whole new family of partner particles exists for each of the known fundamental particles. While this might seem extravagant, these partner particles could address various shortcomings in current scientific knowledge, such as the source of the mysterious dark matter in the universe, the "unnaturally" small mass of the Higgs boson, the anomalous way that the muon spins and even the relationship between the various forces of nature. But if these supersymmetric particles exist, where might they be hiding? https://phys.org/news/2023-10-atlas-stringent-limits-supersymmetric-dark.html General Physics Tue, 10 Oct 2023 14:25:13 EDT news616166711 Researchers who have been working for years to understand electron arrangement and magnetism in certain semimetals have been frustrated by the fact that the materials only display magnetic properties if they are cooled to just a few degrees above absolute zero. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-topology-magnetism-higher-temperatures.html General Physics Condensed Matter Tue, 10 Oct 2023 13:13:22 EDT news616162397 Some asteroids have measured densities higher than those of any elements known to exist on Earth. This suggests that they are at least partly composed of unknown types of "ultradense" matter that cannot be studied by conventional physics. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-periodic-table-superheavy-elements-ultradense.html General Physics Tue, 10 Oct 2023 11:37:10 EDT news616156627 The positron, the antiparticle of the electron, has the same mass and charge as that of an electron but with the sign flipped for the charge. It is an attractive particle for scientists because the use of positrons has led to important insights and developments in the fields of elementary particle physics, atomic physics, materials science, astrophysics, and medicine. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-ionic-crystal-generates-molecular-ions.html General Physics Quantum Physics Tue, 10 Oct 2023 11:12:03 EDT news616155121 A team of physicists at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel has found that when ants of a certain species collectively carry a large object, they do so in a way that mimics a self-propelled particle as it moves through a fluid. In their paper published in the open-access journal PRX Life, the group describes their study of the behavior of Paratrechina longicornis, a species of ant that are known for collectively carrying large food items to their nests. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-ants-large-mimics-self-propelled-particle.html General Physics Soft Matter Tue, 10 Oct 2023 09:26:32 EDT news616148789 A University of Portsmouth physicist has explored whether a new law of physics could support the much-debated theory that we are simply characters in an advanced virtual world. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-law-physics-idea-simulation.html General Physics Quantum Physics Mon, 09 Oct 2023 10:02:12 EDT news616064528 A group of theoretical physicists at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has once again succeeded in significantly improving their calculations of the electric charge radius of the proton published in 2021. For the first time they obtained a sufficiently precise result completely without the use of experimental data. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-theoretical-physicists-significantly-proton-radius.html General Physics Quantum Physics Fri, 06 Oct 2023 14:28:03 EDT news615821281 Scientists have caught fast-moving hydrogen atoms—the keys to countless biological and chemical reactions—in action. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-protons-dissociation-ultrafast-electron-camera.html General Physics Optics & Photonics Fri, 06 Oct 2023 13:06:03 EDT news615816361 A new model demonstrates that chasing interactions can induce dynamical patterns in the organization of bacterial species. Structural patterns can be created due to the chasing interactions between two bacterial species. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-interactions-bacteria-insights-behavior.html General Physics Soft Matter Fri, 06 Oct 2023 10:11:44 EDT news615805900 Settling a half century of debate, researchers have discovered that tiny linear defects can propagate through a material faster than sound waves do. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-defects-diamond-faster.html General Physics Condensed Matter Thu, 05 Oct 2023 15:09:04 EDT news615737341 Researchers at the IBS Center for Quantum Nanoscience (QNS) at Ewha Womans University have accomplished a groundbreaking step forward in quantum information science. In partnership with teams from Japan, Spain, and the US, they created a novel electron-spin qubit platform, assembled atom-by-atom on a surface. This breakthrough was published in the journal Science. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-qubit-platform-atom.html General Physics Quantum Physics Thu, 05 Oct 2023 14:00:02 EDT news615716602 Three scientists won the Nobel Prize in physics on Tuesday for giving us the first split-second glimpse into the superfast world of spinning electrons, a field that could one day lead to better electronics or disease diagnoses. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-nobel-prize-physics-electrons.html General Physics Tue, 03 Oct 2023 05:57:47 EDT news615531456 Identifying the underlying cause of extreme events such as floods, heavy downpours or tornados is immensely difficult and can take a concerted effort by scientists over several decades to arrive at feasible physical explanations. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-employs-deep-extreme-events.html General Physics Soft Matter Mon, 02 Oct 2023 14:53:09 EDT news615477181 A hypertriton is a tritium nucleus in which a neutron is replaced by a so-called Lambda hyperon. This type of hypernucleus was first discovered in the 1950s has since been the key focus of numerous studies. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-highly-precise-hypertriton-lifetime.html General Physics Quantum Physics Fri, 29 Sep 2023 10:10:06 EDT news615200513 In nonlinear dynamic systems, a change in one place can trigger an outsized change elsewhere. The climate, the workings of the human brain, and the behavior of the electric grid are all examples—and all change dramatically over time. Because of their inherent unpredictability, dynamic systems like these are notoriously difficult to model. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-catch-22s-reservoir-overlooked-weakness-powerful.html General Physics Thu, 28 Sep 2023 11:09:54 EDT news615118190 An international research team has taken a decisive step toward a new generation of atomic clocks. At the European XFEL X-ray laser, the researchers have created a much more precise pulse generator based on the element scandium, which enables an accuracy of one second in 300 billion years—that is about a thousand times more precise than the current standard atomic clock based on cesium. The team presents its success in the journal Nature. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-milestone-atomic-clock-x-ray-laser.html General Physics Quantum Physics Wed, 27 Sep 2023 11:46:51 EDT news615034008 For those still holding out hope that antimatter levitates rather than falls in a gravitational field, like normal matter, the results of a new experiment are a dose of cold reality. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-antimatter-embraces-earth-falling-downward.html General Physics Quantum Physics Wed, 27 Sep 2023 11:00:01 EDT news615029401 The results of the Chi-Nu physics experiment at Los Alamos National Laboratory have contributed essential, never-before-observed data for enhancing nuclear security applications, understanding criticality safety and designing fast-neutron energy reactors. The Chi-Nu project, a years-long experiment measuring the energy spectrum of neutrons emitted from neutron-induced fission, recently concluded the most detailed and extensive uncertainty analysis of the three major actinide elements—uranium-238, uranium-235 and plutonium-239. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-chi-nu-bolsters-nuclear-energy-reactors.html General Physics Tue, 26 Sep 2023 17:28:03 EDT news614968081 Whether you are familiar with the term "Magnus effect" or not, you have certainly seen it in action. It is when a spinning ball—for instance in football, cricket or baseball—bends away from its expected trajectory, often to the surprise of the opposing team. The principle also has engineering uses, for example to propel certain types of ships or aircraft using a "Flettner rotor." https://phys.org/news/2023-09-memory-induced-magnus-effect-unexpected-curveball.html General Physics Soft Matter Tue, 26 Sep 2023 12:58:54 EDT news614951931