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Electron-phonon interactions in crystals found to be quantized by a fundamental constant

A researcher at the Department of Physics at Tohoku University has uncovered a surprising quantum phenomenon hidden inside ordinary crystals: the strength of interactions between electrons and lattice vibrations—known as phonons—is not continuous, but quantized. Even more remarkably, this strength is universally linked to one of the most iconic numbers in physics: the fine-structure constant.

What makes this dimensionless number (α ≈ 1/137) so iconic is its ability to explain electromagnetic interactions, independent of the units used. Imagine it like a ratio where one pencil is twice as long as another pencil—this ratio won’t change no matter whether you measure the pencil length in cm, inches, or feet.

Laser draws made-to-order magnetic landscapes

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI, in collaboration with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Boulder, Colorado, have for the first time succeeded in using existing laser technology to continuously vary the magnetic properties of two-dimensional materials.

This simple and fast method should make a large number of applications possible, including techniques for data storage and processing. The work is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Sometimes using conventional tools in a novel way produces astounding results. That’s what happened when researchers used the high-tech laser equipment in PSI’s cleanroom for something it was not intended to do. It was originally purchased for photolithography—a process for producing tiny 2D structures.

‘Light-bending’ material that controls blue and ultraviolet light could transform advanced chipmaking

Researchers from TU Delft and Radboud University (The Netherlands) have discovered that the two-dimensional ferroelectric material CuInP₂S₆ (CIPS) can be used to control the pathway and properties of blue and ultraviolet light like no other material can.

With ultraviolet light being the workhorse of advanced chipmaking, high-resolution microscopy and next-generation optical communication technologies, improving the on-chip control over such light is vital. As the researchers describe in the journal Advanced Optical Materials, CIPS can be integrated onto chips, opening exciting new avenues for integrated photonics.

How Two Russian Scientists Revolutionized the Way We Understand Aging and Cancer

A new article reflects on how two generations of scientists reshaped thinking on aging, linking hormonal regulation in the brain to molecular growth pathways. Mikhail Blagosklonny spent his career arguing that aging is not slow decay, but biology stuck in “overdrive.” Only now is it becoming wide

Astronomers Discover One of the Largest Rotating Structures Ever Seen in the Universe

Researchers have found a razor-thin, rotating string of galaxies inside a massive cosmic filament, revealing unexpected alignments that challenge models of how galaxies gain their spin. An international research group led by the University of Oxford has uncovered one of the most extensive rotatin

Gravitational Waves Expose Hidden Dark Matter Around Black Holes

Researchers have created a fully relativistic model showing that gravitational waves might carry hidden clues about dark matter near massive black holes. New research from scientists at the University of Amsterdam outlines how gravitational waves produced by black holes could offer a way to detec

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