Physics
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Physics
X-ray scans explain how the ‘Brazil nut effect’ works
X-ray CT scans of a box of mixed nuts explain the orientations that let large, oblong Brazil nuts rise to the top.
- Particle Physics
The already tiny neutrino’s maximum possible mass has shrunk even further
At less than an electron volt, neutrinos are by far the most lightweight massive particles known, a new measurement confirms.
- Astronomy
Neutron stars may not be as squishy as some scientists thought
NASA’s NICER X-ray telescope finds that the most massive known neutron star has an unexpectedly large diameter.
- Particle Physics
How matter’s hidden complexity unleashed the power of nuclear physics
In the last century, physicists learned to split atomic nuclei and revealed a complex world of fundamental particles.
- Particle Physics
Muon magnetism could hint at a breakdown of physics’ standard model
After two decades, a new measurement of the muon magnetic anomaly reinforces earlier hints that its value disagrees with standard physics.
- Physics
Newly made laser-cooled antimatter could test foundations of modern physics
Physicists have finally used laser cooling to tame unruly antimatter atoms. That could allow new tests of symmetry and Einstein’s theory of gravity.
- Materials Science
Microscopic images reveal the science and beauty of face masks
Important insights into the particle-filtering properties of different fabrics also offer a sense of the unseen, textured world of face masks.
- Physics
Uranium ‘snowflakes’ could set off thermonuclear explosions of dead stars
Uranium crystals that settle in the cores of white dwarfs could trigger nuclear chain reactions that blow the dead stars apart, a new study suggests.
- Physics
Atomic clocks take a step toward redefining the second
Measurements of the clocks’ frequencies provide the most precise clock comparisons yet, with uncertainties less than a quadrillionth of a percent.
- Physics
Can room-temperature superconductors work without extreme pressure?
The next generation of materials that conduct electricity with no resistance could shrug off the need for high pressure and low temperatures.
- Physics
A tiny gold ball is the smallest object to have its gravity measured
A gold sphere with a mass of about 90 milligrams pulled on another sphere in accordance with Newton’s law of universal gravitation.
- Physics
A magnetic trap captures elusive ultracold plasma
Pinning plasma within a set of magnetic fields offers physicists a new way to study clean energy, space weather and the inner workings of stars.
