https://phys.org/physics-news/ en-us The latest news in physics, materials science, quantum physics, optics and photonics, superconductivity science and technology. Updated Daily. Disc golf is booming, with record numbers of players turning up each year to partake in the disc-throwing sport. It is also whizzing and whistling. In fact, the sound a disc makes while soaring through the air toward its target is full of information about how fast the disc is flying and how quickly it spins. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-physics-din-flying-discs.html General Physics Sun, 03 Dec 2023 23:40:01 EST news620650035 Twenty-five feet below ground, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory scientist Spencer Gessner opens a large metal picnic basket. This is not your typical picnic basket filled with cheese, bread and fruit—it contains screws, bolts, steel tubing, and many other parts and pieces that carry particles to nearly the speed of light. The components are arranged precisely to do an important job: help feed bunches of fast-moving electrons into the stuff that the sun is made of: plasma. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-particle-cold-plasma-large-picnic.html General Physics Plasma Physics Fri, 01 Dec 2023 15:28:02 EST news620666873 If you mix cornstarch and water in the right proportions, you get something that seems not-quite-liquid but also not-quite-solid. Oobleck flows and settles like a liquid when untouched but stiffens when you try to pick it up or stir it with a spoon. The properties of oobleck and other non-Newtonian fluids—including Silly Putty, quicksand, paint, and yogurt—change under stress or pressure, and scientists have long struggled to prove exactly why. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-oobleck-like-fluids-contributes-smart-material.html General Physics Soft Matter Fri, 01 Dec 2023 12:06:37 EST news620654793 Friction is hard to predict and control, especially since surfaces that come in contact are rarely perfectly flat. New experiments demonstrate that the amount of friction between two silicon surfaces, even at large scales, is determined by the forming and rupturing of microscopic chemical bonds between them. This makes it possible to control the amount of friction using surface chemistry techniques. This research has been published in Physical Review Letters. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-friction-small-large-scales.html General Physics Condensed Matter Fri, 01 Dec 2023 08:14:32 EST news620640870 Researchers at the University of Sydney Nano Institute have invented a compact silicon semiconductor chip that integrates electronics with photonic, or light, components. The new technology significantly expands radio-frequency (RF) bandwidth and the ability to accurately control information flowing through the unit. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-photonic-chip-lego-door-semiconductor.html Optics & Photonics Fri, 01 Dec 2023 07:14:49 EST news620637287 Interactions between intense laser pulses and plasma mirrors have been the focus of several recent physics studies due to the interesting effects they produce. Experiments have revealed that these interactions can generate a non-linear physical process known as high-order harmonics, characterized by the emission of extreme ultraviolet radiation (XUV) and brief flashes of laser light (i.e., attosecond pulses). https://phys.org/news/2023-11-anomalous-relativistic-emission-intense-interaction.html Optics & Photonics Plasma Physics Fri, 01 Dec 2023 07:00:01 EST news620560616 The world's biggest experimental nuclear fusion reactor in operation was inaugurated in Japan on Friday, a technology in its infancy but billed by some as the answer to humanity's future energy needs. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-japanese-experimental-nuclear-fusion-reactor.html General Physics Plasma Physics Fri, 01 Dec 2023 02:41:20 EST news620620871 Integrated optical signal distributing, processing, and sensing networks require the miniaturization of basic optical elements, such as waveguides, splitters, gratings, and optical switches. To achieve this, fabrication approaches that allow for high-resolution manufacturing are required. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-low-cost-microscope-photolithography-high-resolution-fabrication.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 17:06:03 EST news620586361 Liquid-crystal (LC) phase modulators are widely used in optical systems because of their advantages of low power consumption, lightweight, flexible bandwidth adjustment, and non-mechanical movements. However, most LC phase modulators are polarization-sensitive, meaning that they affect the light phase differently depending on its polarization. This can limit their performance and functionality in some applications. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-approach-polarization-independent-lc-phase-modulation.html General Physics Optics & Photonics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 17:05:02 EST news620586301 Emerging technologies for non-line-of-sight imaging can detect objects even if they are around a corner or behind a wall. In new work, researchers use a new type of detector to extend this method from visible light into near and mid-infrared wavelengths, an advance that could be especially useful for unmanned vehicles, robotic vision, endoscopy, and other applications. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-non-line-of-sight-imaging-longer-wavelengths.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:13:17 EST news620579593 Long before the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment takes its first measurements in an effort to expand our understanding of the universe, a prototype for one of the experiment's detectors is blazing new trails in neutrino detection technology. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-prototype-dune-detector-technology-neutrinos.html General Physics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:04:12 EST news620579047 Long before researchers discovered the electron and its role in generating electrical current, they knew about electricity and were exploring its potential. One thing they learned early on was that metals were great conductors of both electricity and heat. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-law-quirky-quantum-materials.html General Physics Quantum Physics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 14:00:02 EST news620568352 Photonic integrated circuits (PICs) are compact devices that combine multiple optical components on a single chip. They have a wide range of applications in communications, ranging, sensing, computing, spectroscopy, and quantum technology. PICs are now manufactured using mature semiconductor fabrication technologies. It has reduced costs and improved performance. This makes PICs a promising technology for a variety of applications. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-two-photon-lithography-photonic-packaging-solution.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 13:56:07 EST news620574965 A new study suggests that universities have an essential role to fulfill in the continued growth and success of any modern high-tech industry, and especially the nascent fusion industry; however, the importance of that role is not reflected in the number of fusion-oriented faculty and educational channels currently available. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-universities-critical-emerging-fusion-industry.html Plasma Physics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 12:22:04 EST news620569321 Microgels form a thin protective shell around a droplet until the temperature rises above 32°C. Then the microgels shrink and the droplet dissolves in the surrounding liquid. A study by researchers from the University of Gothenburg now reveals the underlying mechanism behind this process. The discovery could revolutionize methods of targeting medicines to specific locations within the body. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-droplets-route-medicines.html Soft Matter Thu, 30 Nov 2023 11:01:03 EST news620564461 An international team of researchers including Prof. Badri Krishnan at Radboud University has verified an important property of black holes known as the no-hair theorem using gravitational wave observations. Their research is published in the journal Physical Review Letters. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-gravitational-binary-black-hole-merger.html General Physics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 10:27:35 EST news620562452 A future quantum network may become less of a stretch thanks to researchers at the University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory and Cambridge University. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-diamond-quantum-bits.html Condensed Matter Quantum Physics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 10:11:08 EST news620561465 A trio of experimental physicists and applied mathematicians at New York University has found evidence that Egypt's Great Sphinx of Giza may have originated as a natural formation. For their study, published in the journal Physical Review Fluids, Samuel Boury, Scott Weady and Leif Ristroph, looked into natural erosion processes and tested the idea that the Sphinx got its start naturally via strong winds. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-nature-great-sphinx-giza.html General Physics Soft Matter Thu, 30 Nov 2023 10:00:01 EST news620560710 The practice of keeping time hinges on stable oscillations. In a grandfather clock, the length of a second is marked by a single swing of the pendulum. In a digital watch, the vibrations of a quartz crystal mark much smaller fractions of time. And in atomic clocks, the world's state-of-the-art timekeepers, the oscillations of a laser beam stimulate atoms to vibrate at 9.2 billion times per second. These smallest, most stable divisions of time set the timing for today's satellite communications, GPS systems, and financial markets. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-stable-clocks-quantum-phenomena-presence.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Thu, 30 Nov 2023 09:53:04 EST news620560381 Optical wireless may no longer have any obstacles. A study by Politecnico di Milano, conducted together with Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Pisa, the University of Glasgow and Stanford University, and published in Nature Photonics, has made it possible to create photonic chips that mathematically calculate the optimal shape of light to best pass through any environment, even one that is unknown or changing over time. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-photonic-chips-optimal-next-gen-wireless.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 13:21:24 EST news620486481 From precise inkjet printing to clear vision through spectacle lenses—the influence of droplets and their movement shapes numerous areas of our daily lives. While droplets should remain precisely in place on inkjet prints, it is desirable that they move quickly across the surface of spectacle lenses. Research into wetting processes, therefore, plays a crucial role in further improving technological applications. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-electricity-effects-droplets.html General Physics Soft Matter Wed, 29 Nov 2023 11:40:02 EST news620480401 Quantum technologies are currently maturing at a breath-taking pace. These technologies exploit principles of quantum mechanics in suitably engineered systems, with bright prospects such as boosting computational efficiencies or communication security well beyond what is possible with devices based on today's 'classical' technologies. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-quantum-storage-entangled-photons-telecom.html Quantum Physics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 11:22:04 EST news620479322 Researchers at the University of Konstanz have discovered a new type of ultrafast magnetic switching by investigating fluctuations that normally tend to interfere with experiments as noise. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-scientists-ultrafast-magnetic-noise.html Condensed Matter Optics & Photonics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 11:00:42 EST news620478039 Entanglement is a quantum phenomenon where the properties of two or more particles become interconnected in such a way that one cannot assign a definite state to each individual particle anymore. Rather, we have to consider all particles at once that share a certain state. The entanglement of the particles ultimately determines the properties of a material. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-quantum-tool-door-uncharted-phenomena.html Quantum Physics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 11:00:01 EST news620476122 Scientists have developed a new way to study the shapes of atomic nuclei and their internal building blocks. The method relies on modeling the production of certain particles from high-energy collisions of electrons with nuclear targets. Such collisions will take place at the future Electron Ion Collider (EIC). The findings are published in the journal Physical Review Letters. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-theoretical-future-electron-ion-collider.html General Physics Quantum Physics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 10:27:29 EST news620476047 In the search for new particles and forces in nature, physicists are on the hunt for behaviors within atoms and molecules that are forbidden by the tried-and-true Standard Model of particle physics. Any deviations from this model could indicate what physicists affectionately refer to as "new physics." https://phys.org/news/2023-11-scientists-method-deviations-standard-physics.html General Physics Quantum Physics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 10:26:53 EST news620476011 Blue light-emitting diodes represent a fundamental element in the contemporary lighting and display technology landscape. Like prevailing technology such as III-V, organics and quantum dot LEDs, developing efficient and stable blue perovskite light-emitting diodes (PeLEDs) is a formidable challenge. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-chloride-ions-stability-blue-perovskite.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 10:10:07 EST news620475001 Researchers from the University of Ottawa (uOttawa), in collaboration with the Weizmann Institute of Science and Lancaster University, have observed a hidden quantum transition that can only be seen depending on how observers perform measurements. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-hidden-quantum-transition-bridges-gap.html Quantum Physics Wed, 29 Nov 2023 09:56:03 EST news620474161 In research, sometimes the bumpy path proves to be the best one. By creating tiny, periodic bumps in a miniature racetrack for light, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues at the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI), a research partnership between the University of Maryland and NIST, have converted near-infrared (NIR) laser light into specific desired wavelengths of visible light with high accuracy and efficiency. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-scientists-miniaturized-technique-generate-precise.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 28 Nov 2023 16:29:02 EST news620411339 Surface functionalization via micro/nano structuring is not only a thriving research area inspired by bionics but also of great importance for various practical applications. The key to achieving various surface functions is the fabrication of surface micro/nano structures with controlled dimensions, hierarchies, and compositions, which is driving the continuous progress of micro/nano fabrication techniques. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-gaining-fabrication-surface-micronano-ultrafast.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 28 Nov 2023 14:58:02 EST news620405881