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Research shows path toward protocells on Saturn’s moon Titan

NASA research has shown that cell-like compartments called vesicles could form naturally in the lakes of Saturn’s moon Titan.

Titan is the only world apart from Earth that is known to have liquid on its surface. However, Titan’s lakes and seas are not filled with water. Instead, they contain liquid hydrocarbons like ethane and methane.

On Earth, is thought to have been essential for the origin of life as we know it. Many astrobiologists have wondered whether Titan’s liquids could also provide an environment for the formation of the molecules required for life—either as we know it or perhaps as we don’t know it—to take hold there.

Neutrinos could have a secret life: Study suggests they may interact secretly during massive star collapse

Neutrinos are cosmic tricksters, paradoxically hardly there but lethal to stars significantly more massive than the sun.

These come in three known “flavors”: electron, muon and tau. Whatever the flavor, neutrinos are notoriously slippery, and much about their properties remains mysterious. It is almost impossible to collide neutrinos with each other in the lab, so it is not known if neutrinos interact with each other according to the , or if there are much-speculated “secret” interactions only among neutrinos.

Now a team of researchers from the Network for Neutrinos, Nuclear Astrophysics, and Symmetries (N3AS), including several from UC San Diego, have shown, through theoretical calculations, how collapsing can act as a “neutrino collider.” Neutrinos steal from these stars, forcing them to contract and causing their electrons to move near light speed. This drives the stars to instability and collapse.

New theory clarifies why tunnel magnetoresistance oscillates with barrier thickness

Researchers have developed a new theory that explains why tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR)—used in magnetic memory and other technologies—oscillates with changes in the thickness of the insulating barrier within a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ). This oscillation was clearly observed when NIMS recently recorded the world’s highest TMR ratio. Understanding the mechanisms behind this phenomenon is expected to significantly aid in further increasing TMR ratios.

This research is published as a letter article in Physical Review B.

The TMR effect is a phenomenon observed in thin-film structures called magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs). It refers to changes in depending on the relative alignment of magnetizations in two magnetic layers (i.e., parallel or antiparallel alignment) separated by an insulating barrier. It is desirable to develop MTJs with larger TMR effects—reflected in higher TMR ratios—in order to expand their potential applications, including improvement of magnetic sensor sensitivity and expansion of capacity.

The dark side of time: Scientists develop nuclear clock method to detect dark matter using thorium-229

For nearly a century, scientists around the world have been searching for dark matter—an invisible substance believed to make up about 80% of the universe’s mass and needed to explain a variety of physical phenomena. Numerous methods have been used in attempts to detect dark matter, from trying to produce it in particle accelerators to searching for cosmic radiation that it might emit in space.

Yet even today, very little is known about this matter’s fundamental properties. Although it operates in the background, dark matter is believed to influence visible matter, but in ways so subtle that they currently cannot be directly measured.

Scientists believe that if a nuclear clock is developed—one that uses the atomic nucleus to measure time with —even the tiniest irregularities in its ticking could reveal dark matter’s influence. Last year, physicists in Germany and Colorado made a breakthrough toward building such a clock, using the radioactive element thorium-229.

Researchers demonstrate error-resistant quantum gates using exotic anyons for computation

The quantum computing revolution draws ever nearer, but the need for a computer that makes correctable errors continues to hold it back.

Through a collaboration with IBM led by Cornell, researchers have brought that revolution one step closer, achieving two major breakthroughs. First, they demonstrated an error-resistant implementation of universal quantum gates, the essential building blocks of quantum computation. Second, they showcased the power of a topological quantum computer in solving hard problems that a conventional computer couldn’t manage.

In the article “Realizing String-Net Condensation: Fibonacci Anyon Braiding for Universal Gates and Sampling Chromatic Polynomials” published in Nature Communications, an between researchers at IBM, Cornell, Harvard University and the Weizman Institute of Science demonstrated, for the first time, the ability to encode information by braiding—moving in a particular order—Fibonacci string net condensate (Fib SNC) anyons, which are exotic quasi-particles, in two dimensional space.

Patterns of patterns: Exploring supermoiré engineering

A few years ago, physicists were surprised to learn that stacking and subtly twisting two atomically thin layers of an electronic material like graphene creates a pattern that changes the material’s properties and can even turn it into a superconductor. This superimposed grid, like what would emerge if two window screens were laid slightly askew, is called a moiré pattern.

But why stop there? It turns out adding a third layer, with each layer twisted at slightly different angles, produces even more complex interferences known as supermoiré patterns (aka moiré of moiré). The supermoiré pattern induces profound changes in how electrons move through the material, but until recently, scientists had had trouble measuring exactly what changes occur and why.

Now, applied physicists in the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have used a specially designed microscope to probe the properties of supermoiré patterns in trilayer graphene to an extent that was never possible before. Using their microscope, they saw many new states of matter in which electrons would get stuck or form unusual groups, leading to changes in the entire system’s electronic behavior and opening doors to studying layered materials with precisely controllable properties.

Researchers certify genuine quantum behavior in computers with up to 73 qubits

Can you prove whether a large quantum system truly behaves according to the weird and wonderful rules of quantum mechanics—or if it just looks like it does? In a new study, physicists from Leiden, Beijing and Hangzhou found the answer to this question.

You could call it a “quantum lie detector”: Bell’s test designed by famous physicist John Bell. This test shows whether a machine, like a quantum computer, is truly using or just mimics them.

As quantum technologies become more mature, ever more stringent tests of quantumness become necessary. In this new study, the researchers took things to the next level, testing Bell correlations in systems with up to 73 qubits—the basic building blocks of a quantum computer.

Scientists unveil new way to control magnetism in super-thin materials

A powerful new method to control magnetic behavior in ultra-thin materials could lead to faster, smaller and more energy-efficient technologies, a study suggests.

Researchers have developed a new way to precisely tune magnetism using a material—called CrPS4—that is just a few atoms thick. The study is published in the journal Nature Materials.

The advance could solve a long-standing scientific problem and pave the way for the development of new smart magnetic technologies, from computer memory devices to next-generation electronics, the team says.

Researchers make key advances in radiation detection

Researchers in the Oregon State University College of Engineering have developed new technology for uranium enrichment measurement and trace element detection, vital for nuclear nonproliferation and supporting the development and operation of next-generation nuclear reactors.

“The technology that we are developing can support nuclear safeguards as well as nuclear energy development,” said Haori Yang, associate professor of nuclear science and engineering. “It can enable on-site enrichment measurements with minimal or no sample preparation, which means a quick turnaround time. It can also be used to monitor fuel in Gen-IV nuclear reactors, such as liquid metal–cooled reactors.”

In its naturally occurring state, uranium contains less than 1% U-235, the isotope that can sustain a nuclear chain reaction; the rest is U-238, which is much less able to do so.

Is Intelligence Genetic? Scientists Discover Heritable Brain State That Powers Cognitive Flexibility

Brain dynamics and cognition share genetic roots. Criticality may guide future brain health research. A recent study published on June 24 in PNAS presents strong evidence that brain criticality—the delicate balance between neural excitation and inhibition—is heavily influenced by genetic factors