Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
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Intergalactic magnetism runs deep and wide
Mounting evidence that magnetic fields of surprising strength permeate intergalactic space raises questions about how the fields form and what effects they have.
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Groovy ’70s sound keeps X rays tight
Cast aside as a way to reproduce music, LP phonograph records reveal another, unsuspected talent that scientists plan to exploit-focusing X rays.
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Magnetic snap gives ions extra pop
Magnetic fields pump heat into ions when field lines of opposite orientation snap and reconnect.
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Cooled device unveils a quantum limit
A novel suspended device chilled near absolute zero demonstrates the existence of a basic unit, or quantum, of heat conductance—the first evidence of quantum mechanics in mechanical structures.
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Writing with warm atoms
Researchers demonstrated that they can use a scanning tunneling microscope to position atoms in microscopic patterns at room temperature.
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Ring around the proton
An orbiting electron accelerated to relativistic velocities by a laser in a strong magnetic field can behave like a ring-shaped electron cloud spinning around the nucleus.
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Four ions mingle in quantum chorus
A new way to produce mysterious quantum correlations among particles ups the record to four particles linked, or entangled, and opens the door to correlating many more particles on cue, a prerequisite for making quantum computers.
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Prize honors physicist with conscience
Physicist-author Freeman J. Dyson received the Templeton prize for originality in advancing religious understanding.
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Devilish polygons speak of past stress
A new theory and a simple test with cornstarch and water may help explain the polygonal geometry of rock columns in the Devil's Postpile in California and elsewhere.
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Nanotubes get into gear for new roll
Atoms on the surface of carbon nanotubes appear to mesh when tubes roll across a graphite surface, making the tubes possible atomic-scale gears, which have been long-sought in nanotechnology.
