Physics
- Physics
Path to new elements now looks steeper
Making novel, superheavy elements is harder than was previously expected, according to a new experiment, but the findings may also help physicists better choose which atoms to smash into which.
- Physics
Constant Changes
Evidence from the early universe that one of the so-called constants of nature, known as alpha, was once slightly smaller than it is today hints that the laws of physics themselves may vary over time and space.
- Physics
Atomic Crowds Tied by Quantum Thread
Quantum states of record numbers of atoms—entire atom clouds—get blended together by physicists wielding a new, relatively simple technique in quantum telecommunications and computing.
- Materials Science
Ceramics stretch for future applications
Researchers have created a ceramic that stretches to 10 times its original length in record time.
- Physics
Model may expose how friction lets loose
Rather than just grinding past each other, sliding surfaces may tremble with minuscule ripples that overcome friction as they move along.
- Materials Science
Materials use nitric oxide to kill bacteria
A novel coating may offer a new way to fend off microbial buildup on catheters, artificial hips, and replacement cardiac valves.
- Materials Science
Speed demon gets hooked on silicon
A method for coating silicon with high-performance semiconductors such as gallium arsenide may make faster, low-power microcircuits both cheaper and more widespread.
- Physics
Caught in a Flash
View the tip of a snapped towel (which moves faster than the speed of sound), then take a look at a bursting water balloon, a collapsing water drop, a tennis ball in mid-collision with a racket, and many other amazing images in this gallery of high-speed photos snapped by high school students. Sorry! This Web […]
- Physics
Window Opens into Strange Nuclei
By creating peculiar atomic nuclei that contain not just protons and neutrons but also pairs of rare nuclear particles with so-called strange quarks inside, researchers are shedding new light on the fundamental structure of matter and how it behaves under extreme conditions, as in neutron stars.
- Physics
Accelerators load some new ammo: Crystals
To make denser accelerator beams that may open new doors in physics, researchers have chilled ions in a miniature test accelerator until the ions coalesced into crystals.
- Materials Science
Chemical sensors gain true portability
Researchers have designed simple new films for indicating the presence of worrisome airborne chemicals.
- Physics
Electrons rock and roll in nanotubes
New probes of tiny carbon nanotubes reveal that the wavelike, quantum nature of electrons plays a role in tube properties and may even make possible novel electronic components that harness quantum effects.
