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Photonic chip design offers simpler solution for one-way light flow in optical circuits

To improve photonic and electronic circuitry used in semiconductor chips and fiber optic systems, researchers at the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis tinkered with the rules of physics that govern the movement of light over time and space. They have introduced a new way to manipulate light transmission, opening possibilities for advanced optical devices.

Their method causes a “mirror-flip of the system,” said Lan Yang, the Edwin H. & Florence G. Skinner Professor of electrical and and senior author of the research, now published in Science Advances.

Using parity-time (PT) symmetric photonic waveguides, they can manipulate the light waves to “reverse time” so the system behaves the same as before, Yang added.

Dark matter formed when fast particles slowed down and got heavy, new theory says

A study by Dartmouth researchers proposes a new theory about the origin of dark matter, the mysterious and invisible substance thought to give the universe its shape and structure. They say the hypothetical force shaping the universe sprang from particles that rapidly condensed, like steam into water.

The researchers report in Physical Review Letters that could have formed in the early life of the universe from the collision of high-energy massless particles that lost their zip and took on an incredible amount of mass immediately after pairing up, according to their mathematical models.

Hypothetical dark matter is believed to exist based on observed gravitational effects that cannot be explained by visible matter. Scientists estimate that 85% of the universe’s total mass is dark matter.

A proposed new route to sharper imaging using quantum interference

A new study from the University of Portsmouth has outlined a possible way to improve how we distinguish between two closely spaced light sources, an issue that has long challenged classical imaging systems.

The approach, published in Physical Review Applied, uses principles from to estimate small separations between light-emitting objects, with potential future applications in fields like microscopy, astronomy, and remote sensing.

The research suggests that a relatively simple quantum set-up could be used to extract that is traditionally limited by the so-called Rayleigh criterion—a rule dating back over a century that defines the limits of classical resolution.

Superconductors: Amazingly orderly disorder in murunskite

A surprising effect was discovered through a collaborative study by researchers from TU Wien and institutions in Croatia, France, Poland, Singapore, Switzerland, and the US during the investigation of a special material: the atoms are arranged in a completely disordered manner but produce magnetic order.

The study is published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.

Superconductivity is one of the central topics in modern materials science: certain materials can conduct electrical current without any resistance—at least below a certain temperature. However, how to produce materials that still exhibit this property at higher temperatures remains an unsolved problem.

Spin-based memory advance brings brain-like computing closer to reality

Researchers at National Taiwan University have developed a new type of spintronic device that mimics how synapses work in the brain—offering a path to more energy-efficient and accurate artificial intelligence systems.

In a study published in Advanced Science, the team introduced three novel memory designs, all controlled purely by electric current and without any need for an .

Among the devices, the one based on “tilted anisotropy” stood out. This optimized structure was able to achieve 11 stable memory states with highly consistent switching behavior.

The Great Cosmic Wiggle: Quasars Reveal Gravity’s Hidden Rhythm

Gravitational waves are constantly washing over Earth, but an astrophysicist aims to capture them in an entirely new way—by watching distant quasars appear to wiggle due to spacetime distortions.

Using data from the Gaia satellite, he’s searching for three-dimensional effects that previous techniques might have missed.

Exploring a new method to detect gravitational waves.

Music Does Something Amazing to Your Brain’s Own Natural Rhythms

Ever felt like a song really resonates with you? That may be more true than you think.

A new theory suggests that we don’t just listen to it; our bodies physically resonate with music, as our brains’ natural oscillations synchronize with structures like rhythm and pitch.

Music is often thought of as a ‘universal language’ – people across cultures will bust out similar moves, and young kids will instinctively bop to a beat.

BianLian and RansomExx Exploit SAP NetWeaver Flaw to Deploy PipeMagic Trojan

At least two different cybercrime groups BianLian and RansomExx are said to have exploited a recently disclosed security flaw in SAP NetWeaver tracked as CVE-2025–31324, indicating that multiple threat actors are taking advantage of the bug.

Cybersecurity firm ReliaQuest, in a new update published today, said it uncovered evidence suggesting involvement from the BianLian data extortion crew and the RansomExx ransomware family, which is traced by Microsoft under the moniker Storm-2460.

BianLian is assessed to be involved in at least one incident based on infrastructure links to IP addresses previously identified as attributed to the e-crime group.