Lifeboat Foundation

Astronomers uncovered that a well-known X-ray binary, whose exact nature has been a mystery to scientists until now, is actually a hidden ultraluminous X-ray source. X-ray binaries are intriguing systems consisting of two celestial bodies: a normal star and a compact, dead object such as a black hole or a neutron star that sucks material from its stellar companion. A few hundred such sources have been identified thus far in our Galaxy. When it comes to the most powerful phenomena in the Universe, the release of gravitational energy in X-ray binary systems stands out as a highly efficient process.

Among the first X-ray binary systems discovered in the cosmos is the system Cygnus X-3. Since the early 1970s, this binary system was noted for its ability to briefly emerge as one of the most intense radio sources, yet in a few days it dims or vanishes altogether.

This peculiar characteristic spurred early efforts, coordinated by telephone calls, to unite astronomical observations across the globe.

The special properties of rare earth magnetic materials are due to the electrons in the 4f shell. Until now, the magnetic properties of 4f electrons were considered almost impossible to control.

Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and several collaborating institutions have successfully demonstrated an innovative approach to find breakthrough materials for quantum applications. The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.

The space environment is harsh and full of extreme radiation. Scientists designing spacecraft and satellites need materials that can withstand these conditions.

In a paper published in January 2024, my team of materials researchers demonstrated that a next-generation semiconductor material called metal-halide perovskite can actually recover and heal itself from radiation damage.

This high-mobility film shows unprecedented potential.

Physicists at the University of Stuttgart under the leadership of Prof. Sebastian Loth are developing quantum microscopy which enables them for the first time to record the movement of electrons at the atomic level with both extremely high spatial and temporal resolution. Their method has the potential to enable scientists to develop materials in a much more targeted way than before.

The researchers have published their findings in the journal Nature Physics (“Terahertz spectroscopy of collective charge density wave dynamics at the atomic scale”).

“With the method we developed, we can make things visible that no one has seen before,” says Prof. Sebastian Loth, Managing Director of the Institute for Functional Matter and Quantum Technologies (FMQ) at the University of Stuttgart. “This makes it possible to settle questions about the movement of electrons in solids that have been unanswered since the 1980s.” However, the findings of Loth’s group are also of very practical significance for the development of new materials.

Is a cross-disciplinary multimedia performance piece featuring self-developed found material robots, real-time AI generation, motion tracking, audio spatialization, and bio-feedback-based audio synthesis. The immersive piece challenges the human-centric perspective and invites audiences to contemplate the coexistence of technology, nature, and us.

Credits （in alphabetical order):
Co-Directors: Mingyong Cheng, Sophia Sun, Han Zhang.
Performers: Yuemeng Gu, Erika Roos.
Robotic Engineer: Sophia Sun.
Visual Artist: Mingyong Cheng.
Sound Designer: Han Zhang.
Lighting Engineer: Zehao Wang, Han Zhang.
Video Editor: Yuemeng Gu.
Post Production Coordinator: Mingyong Cheng.
Technical \& Installation Support: Yifan Guo, Ke Li, Zehao Wang, Zetao Yu.

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A research team led by the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has bridged a knowledge gap in atomic-scale heat motion. This new understanding holds promise for enhancing materials to advance an emerging technology called solid-state cooling.

An environmentally friendly innovation, solid-state cooling could efficiently chill many things in daily life from food to vehicles to electronics — without traditional refrigerant liquids and gases or moving parts. The system would operate via a quiet, compact and lightweight system that allows precise temperature control.

Although the discovery of improved materials and the invention of higher-quality devices are already helping to promote the growth of the new cooling method, a deeper understanding of material enhancements is essential. The research team used a suite of neutron-scattering instruments to examine at the atomic scale a material that scientists consider to be an optimal candidate for use in solid-state cooling.

Superconductors are materials capable of conducting electricity without any resistance when they are cooled below a specific temperature known as the critical temperature. These materials are used in various applications such as power grids, maglev trains, and medical imaging equipment. High-temperature superconductors, which operate at higher critical temperatures than conventional superconductors, hold great promise for enhancing these technologies. Nonetheless, the underlying mechanisms of their superconductivity are not yet fully understood.

Copper oxides or cuprates, a class of high-temperature superconductors, exhibit superconductivity when electrons and holes (vacant spaces left behind by electrons) are introduced into their crystal structure through a process called doping. Interestingly, in the low-doped state, with less-than-optimal electrons required for superconductivity, a pseudogap ­­–a partial gap in the electronic structure– opens. This pseudogap is considered a potential factor in the origin of superconductivity in these materials.