Physics

In a new paper published this month in the journal Physical Review D, a duo of theoretical physicists from Case Western Reserve University, the University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences and Yangzhou University described a technique for detecting traversable wormholes — theoretical portals through space-time that could create …

Physicists using the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility have created a new compound of plutonium (Pu) with an unexpected, pentavalent oxidation state — Pu (V). The new compound is solid and stable, and may represent a transient phase in radioactive waste repositories. A plutonium dioxide nanoparticle. Image credit: Kristina Kvashnina. One …

An international team of scientists sent high-frequency sound waves across a modified semiconductor device to direct the behavior of a single electron, with efficiency above 99%. 3D render of the semiconductor nanostructure. Image credit: Hermann Edlbauer. A quantum computer would be able to solve previously unsolvable computational problems by taking …

In a paper published in the journal Physical Review Letters, an international team of physicists proposes a new strategy for searching for hypothetical dark matter particles called axions using tunable plasmas. Lawson et al propose a new instrument for searching dark matter axions using tunable plasmas. Image credit: Alexander Millar …

A team of researchers from the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the University of Washington proposes a new model of plasma motion that would explain the 11-year sunspot cycle, magnetic reversals, and other previously unexplained solar phenomena. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) captured this image of the Sun with …

After decades of unsuccessful attempts, physicists have directly observed an exotic physical phenomenon called the non-Abelian Aharonov-Bohm effect. The findings could lead to realizations of what are known as topological phases, and eventually to advances toward fault-tolerant quantum computers. To confirm the presence of non-Abelian gauge fields, Yang et al …

An international team of scientists from the United Kingdom and the United States has discovered a previously unknown type of electromagnetic wave: a Dyakonov-Voigt surface wave. Mackay et al found theoretically a new type of electromagnetic surface wave. Image credit: Arek Socha. University of Edinburgh’s Dr. Tom Mackay and his …

One of the fundamental principles of quantum mechanics is quantum superposition, in which a particle exists in two or more states simultaneously. In a paper published in the journal Nature Communications, University of Queensland physicist Magdalena Zych and colleagues show that particles are not the only objects that can exist …

A team of researchers from the University of Oxford and IBM Research-Zürich has, for the first time, synthesized and characterized a ring of 18 carbon atoms.   Cyclo[18]carbon. Image credit: Kaiser et al. Carbon, one of the most abundant elements in the Universe, is capable of forming many different forms …

A team of physicists from New York University, Wayne State University and the University at Buffalo has found experimental evidence for a transition between trivial and topological superconductivity in a quantum mechanical device called a Josephson junction. This breakthrough offers promise for increasing storage capabilities in electronic devices and enhancing …