Quark-gluon plasma, a bizarre state of matter that mimics the early cosmos, is the hottest thing ever made on Earth
Category: particle physics – Page 91
Electrical control of spin currents in graphene via ferroelectric switching achieved
A collaborative European research team led by physicists from Slovak Academy of Sciences has theorized a new approach to control spin currents in graphene by coupling it to a ferroelectric In2Se3 monolayer. Using first-principles and tight-binding simulations, the researcher showed that the ferroelectric switching of In2Se3 can reverse the direction of the spin current in graphene acting as an electrical spin switch. This discovery offers a novel pathway toward energy-efficient, nonvolatile, and magnet-free spintronic devices, marking a key step toward the fabrication of next-generation spin-based logic and memory systems to control spin textures.
The findings are published in the journal Materials Futures.
Nobel Winners Just Proved the Universe Is Quantum — 2025 Physics Prize Explained
#EverythingSpace #Universe.
Nobel Winners Just Proved the Universe Is Quantum — 2025 Physics Prize Explained.
In this episode of Everything Space, we break down the groundbreaking discoveries that earned this year’s Nobel Prize, and what they mean for the way we understand reality itself. From experiments that challenge Einstein’s idea of locality, to the mysterious phenomenon of quantum entanglement, these results show that the universe behaves in ways once thought impossible.
We’ll explore how scientists finally confirmed that particles can influence each other across vast distances — instantaneously — and why this discovery reshapes our understanding of space, time, and the very nature of existence.
Join us as we unravel the science behind the Nobel-winning breakthrough that proves the universe isn’t just strange — it’s quantum.
#QuantumUniverse #Physics2025 #NobelPrize #EverythingSpace #SpaceMysteries.
Unified model may explain vibrational anomalies in solids
Phonons are sound particles or quantized vibrations of atoms in solid materials. The Debye model, a theory introduced by physicist Peter Debye in 1912, describes the contribution of phonons to the specific heat of materials and explains why the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of solids drops sharply at low temperatures.
The Debye model assumes that vibrational frequencies are continuously distributed in a solid material. Past studies, however, found that when phonons have particularly short wavelengths, some anomalies can emerge.
The first of these reported anomalies, the so-called Van Hove singularity (VHS), is characterized by sharp features in the vibrational density of states (DOS) observed in crystals. The second, known as a boson peak, entails a significant excess in the DOS in amorphous solids or glasses.
Heavy atomic nuclei are not as symmetric as previously thought, physicists find
Many heavy atomic nuclei are shaped more or less like squashed rugby balls than fully inflated ones, according to a theoretical study by RIKEN nuclear physicists published in The European Physical Journal A. This unexpected finding overturns the consensus held for more than half a century.
Illustrations of atoms often depict the nucleus as a round blob made up of neutrons and protons. Physicists initially assumed that nuclei were spherical like soccer balls. But in the 1950s, Aage Bohr and Ben Mottelson developed a theory that predicted that many heavy nuclei are elongated in one direction, being shaped like a rugby ball.
Following in the footsteps of his father Niels Bohr, who was awarded the 1922 Nobel prize in physics for his model of the structure of atoms, Aage Bohr shared the 1975 Nobel prize for physics for this discovery.
Physicists unveil system to solve long-standing barrier to new generation of supercomputers
The dream of creating game-changing quantum computers—supermachines that encode information in single atoms rather than conventional bits—has been hampered by the formidable challenge known as quantum error correction.
In a paper published Monday in Nature, Harvard researchers demonstrated a new system capable of detecting and removing errors below a key performance threshold, potentially providing a workable solution to the problem.
“For the first time, we combined all essential elements for a scalable, error-corrected quantum computation in an integrated architecture,” said Mikhail Lukin, co-director of the Quantum Science and Engineering Initiative, Joshua and Beth Friedman University Professor, and senior author of the new paper. “These experiments—by several measures the most advanced that have been done on any quantum platform to date—create the scientific foundation for practical large-scale quantum computation.”
Reactor-grade fusion plasma: First high-precision measurement of potential dynamics
Nuclear fusion, which operates on the same principle that powers the sun, is expected to become a sustainable energy source for the future. To achieve fusion power generation, it is essential to confine plasma at temperatures exceeding one hundred million degrees using a magnetic field and to maintain this high-energy state stably.
A key factor in accomplishing this is the electric potential inside the plasma. This potential governs the transport of particles and energy within the plasma and plays a crucial role in establishing a state in which energy is effectively confined and prevented from escaping. Therefore, accurately measuring the internal plasma potential is essential for improving the performance of future fusion reactors.
A non-contact diagnostic technique called the heavy ion beam probe (HIBP) is used to measure plasma potential directly. In this method, negatively charged gold ions (Au⁻) are accelerated and injected into the plasma.
A new ion-based quantum computer makes error correction simpler
Still, it’s not clear what type of qubit will win in the long run. Each type has design benefits that could ultimately make it easier to scale. Ions (which are used by the US-based startup IonQ as well as Quantinuum) offer an advantage because they produce relatively few errors, says Islam: “Even with fewer physical qubits, you can do more.” However, it’s easier to manufacture superconducting qubits. And qubits made of neutral atoms, such as the quantum computers built by the Boston-based startup QuEra, are “easier to trap” than ions, he says.
Besides increasing the number of qubits on its chip, another notable achievement for Quantinuum is that it demonstrated error correction “on the fly,” says David Hayes, the company’s director of computational theory and design, That’s a new capability for its machines. Nvidia GPUs were used to identify errors in the qubits in parallel. Hayes thinks that GPUs are more effective for error correction than chips known as FPGAs, also used in the industry.
Quantinuum has used its computers to investigate the basic physics of magnetism and superconductivity. Earlier this year, it reported simulating a magnet on H2, Helios’s predecessor, with the claim that it “rivals the best classical approaches in expanding our understanding of magnetism.” Along with announcing the introduction of Helios, the company has used the machine to simulate the behavior of electrons in a high-temperature superconductor.
String theory: Scientists are trying new ways to verify the idea that could unite all of physics
In 1980, Stephen Hawking gave his first lecture as Lucasian Professor at the University of Cambridge. The lecture was called “Is the end in sight for theoretical physics?”
Hawking, who later became my Ph.D. supervisor, predicted that a theory of everything—uniting the clashing branches of general relativity, which describes the universe on large scales, and quantum mechanics, which rules the microcosmos of atoms and particles— might be discovered by the end of the 20th century.
Forty-five years later, there is still no definitive theory of everything. The main candidate is string theory, a framework that describes all forces and particles including gravity. String theory proposes that the building blocks of nature are not point-like particles like quarks (which make up particles in the atomic nucleus) but vibrating strings.
Ultrafast electron diffraction captures atomic layers twisting in response to light
A pulse of light sets the tempo in the material. Atoms in a crystalline sheet just a few atoms thick begin to move—not randomly, but in a coordinated rhythm, twisting and untwisting in sync like dancers following a beat.
This atomic choreography, set in motion by precisely timed bursts of energy, happens far too fast for the human eye or even traditional scientific tools to detect. The entire sequence plays out in about a trillionth of a second.
To witness it, a Cornell–Stanford University collaboration of researchers turned to ultrafast electron diffraction, a technique capable of filming matter at its fastest timescales. Using a Cornell-built instrument and Cornell-built high-speed detector, the team captured atomically thin materials responding to light with a dynamic twisting motion.