All Stories by Peter Weiss
- Physics
Tiny wires trigger electric reversal
Ultrathin zinc nanowires exhibit a puzzling conductivity reversal that flies in the face of known wire behavior.
- Earth
Shafts of snow sculpted by sun
Physicists have created miniature, laboratory versions of towering snow spikes found high in the Andes Mountains.
- Physics
Tipsy Superfluids: Glimpsing off-kilter quantum clouds
A new type of superfluid atom cloud that's been thrown off-balance by having more atoms with their quantum spins pointing up than down, or vice versa, seems to defy theoretical expectations.
- Tech
Meddling with Metal: Novel nanocontrol yields chromium rival
A new, nontoxic alloy that might reduce use of toxic chromium springs from a novel way to manipulate crystalline metal structures via precise control of their atomic composition.
- Tech
Making the most of chip fabrication
An advance in the way microelectronic circuit patterns are created may help preserve conventional chip-making methods beyond the currently predicted date of their demise.
- Tech
A dim view of biologic and chemical agents
Microscopic gel balls that act as lenses may become the active ingredient of quick-acting sensors for bioagents and chemicals.
- Physics
Easy Answers: Quantum computer gives results without running
Quantum physics enables a computer to arrive at correct answers without actually running, a new experiment shows.
- Tech
New View: Speedy microscope takes fuller look at the nanoworld
Action movies of molecules and a better feel for microscopic surfaces could flow from a radically revised version of the atomic-force microscope.
- Tech
Artificial Animalcules
Advances that include the first swimming micromachine and novel designs for similar devices are deepening scientists' understanding of the bizarre world of microscale liquids.
- Tech
Beyond Bar Codes: Tuning up plastic radio labels
Electronic labels made from plastic semiconductors can now pick up and respond to radio signals at a frequency suitable for use on products.
- Physics
Smashing Success: Accelerator gets cool upgrade
A novel scheme for increasing the number of collisions in particle accelerators has boosted the performance of the world's highest-energy collider.
- Materials Science
Mother-of-Pearl on Ice: New ceramics might serve in bones and machines
Ceramics made by freezing water in an unusual way mimic not only the complicated microstructure of mother-of-pearl but also its extraordinary strength and toughness.
