Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Physics
Energy-efficient laser works at room temperature
A room-temperature polariton laser, which requires little electricity, could improve electronics and medical devices.
- Quantum Physics
How to build a quantum-entangled superclock
A blueprint for a quantum-entangled superclock suggests that such a device could enable startlingly precise measurements of Earth’s terrain.
- Materials Science
New invisibility cloak hides in the fog
A simple invisibility cloak relies on hazy environments to mask objects.
- Physics
Precision measurement of antimatter made
The charge of antihydrogen atoms is essentially neutral, even out to eight decimal places, a new precision measurement made at CERN shows.
- Chemistry
Decay of Leonardo da Vinci drawing reflected in light
Light that bounces off a Leonardo da Vinci drawing, widely considered a self-portrait, has revealed extensive chemical damage that causes yellowing.
- Life
A new twist on a twist
Nature abounds with perfect helices. They show up in animal horns and seashells, in DNA and the young tendrils of plants. But helix formation can get complicated: In some cases, the direction of rotation can reverse as a helix grows.
- Materials Science
Jets of salty water make cellulose strands stronger
When blasted by jets of water, nanoscale fibers of cellulose align to form ultra-tough strands that rival the strength of steel, a new study shows.
- Quantum Physics
Maybe classical clockwork can explain quantum weirdness
Nobel laureate Gerard ’t Hooft proposes that a classical cause-and-effect reality underlies the probabilistic strangeness of quantum physics.
- Quantum Physics
The least physics you need is a lot in ‘Quantum Mechanics’
Leonard Susskind and Art Friedman walk readers through the basics needed to understand the quantum realm.
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- Cosmology
2014 Kavli Prize winners announced
Cosmic inflation, nanoscale imaging and a better understanding of memory earn million-dollar honors with the Kavli Prize.
- Particle Physics
Proton’s magnetic properties pinned down
A precise measurement of a proton’s magnetic properties could help reveal subtle differences between matter and antimatter.
