A powerful external magnetic field can transform both the heat flow and the shape of the implosion associated with inertial-confinement fusion—a laser-driven fusion technique.
New schemes based on Rydberg superatoms placed in optical cavities can be used to manipulate single photons with high efficiency.
New schemes based on Rydberg superatoms placed in optical cavities can be used to manipulate single photons with high efficiency.
The past decade has witnessed swift progress in the development and application of quantum technologies. Many promising directions involve using photons, the smallest energy packets of light, as carriers of quantum information [1]. Photons at optical wavelengths can be quickly transported through optical fibers over long distances and with negligible noise, even at room temperature. Unfortunately, one drawback is that photons do not normally interact with each other, which makes it challenging to manipulate a photon with another photon. Optical photons also couple weakly with other quantum systems, such as superconducting qubits, which makes it hard to interface these platforms with photons.
A new design based on the quantum capacitance of a silicon quantum dot could enable scalable, high-fidelity qubit readout.
The Facility for Rare Isotope Beams opens its doors to experiments that will study the formation of heavy elements in the Universe and provide critical tests of nuclear theories.
The Facility for Rare Isotope Beams opens its doors to experiments that will study the formation of heavy elements in the Universe and provide critical tests of nuclear theories.
The nuclear physics community is hailing the kickoff of a long-awaited facility for producing beams of radioactive isotopes, with a cohort of users gearing up for the first experiments. The Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) at Michigan State University opens its doors to experimenters this week. FRIB is expected to deliver the widest range of rare isotopes of any existing facility, including many never-before-synthesized isotopes. The facility will also allow researchers to control the energies of the isotope beams so that they match those relevant to nuclear processes in stars and supernovae.
Rare isotopes get their name from their scarcity—these unstable nuclei decay radioactively and thus cannot be found naturally on Earth. But making sizable quantities of these elements in a lab will allow scientists to tackle important open problems in physics. Current nuclear theories, for instance, can’t describe many nuclei, and rare isotopes provide extreme cases on which to test why such theories fail. Rare isotopes are also relevant to the cosmic nucleosynthesis of heavy elements, a process for which there isn’t yet a satisfactory explanation. On the applied side, radioactive isotopes can be useful for medical imaging, cancer treatment, and other industrial applications.
Can humanity last another 400,000 years? We might have to if we want to talk to another technological civilization.
If there are so many galaxies, stars, and planets, where are all the aliens, and why haven’t we heard from them? Those are the simple questions at the heart of the Fermi Paradox. In a new paper, a pair of researchers ask the next obvious question: how long will we have to survive to hear from another alien civilization?
Their answer? 400,000 years.
Here’s how over 300 astronomers captured the dazzling first image of Sagittarius A*, and why it matters.
Our team was part of the global Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration, which has used observations from a worldwide network of eight radio telescopes on our planet — collectively forming a single, Earth-sized virtual telescope — to take the stunning image. The breakthrough follows the collaboration’s 2019 release of the first-ever image of a black hole, called M87*, at the center of the more distant Messier 87 galaxy.
Black holes: Looking into darkness
The team observed Sagittarius A* on multiple nights, collecting data for many hours in a row, similar to using a long exposure time on a camera. Although we cannot see the black hole itself, because it is completely dark, glowing gas around it reveals a tell-tale signature: a dark central region (called a “shadow”) surrounded by a bright ring-like structure. The new view captures light bent by the powerful gravity of the black hole, which is four million times more massive than our Sun. The discovery also yields valuable clues about the workings of black holes, which are thought to reside at the center of most galaxies.
A “forever battery” is much smaller and more energy-dense than lithium-ion. They’ll change the world and unlock a trillion-dollar revolution.
In this week’s episode, Aaron and I discuss what could be the “holy grail” of energy: the solid-state — or forever battery. Obviously, lithium-ion cells are the status quo of today. And they power pretty much everything, like your smartphone, laptop and electric vehicle.
However, since they comprise liquids and can only be compressed so much, they aren’t the most energy-dense. And we see this limitation all around us. It’s why that EV in your parking space can’t drive long ranges or recharge very fast. And it’s why that smartphone in your pocket will run out of juice by the end of the day.
Summary: Supplementing a diet with Ascidiacea, or sea squirts, reversed some of the main signs of aging in mouse models.
Source: Xi’an jiaotong-Liverpool University.
If you have ever looked in the mirror and seen graying hair and wrinkles or forgotten the name of a close friend, you’d be forgiven for wishing for a pill that could slow or even reverse the effects of aging.
With Earth’s natural resources running out, people are looking to mineral-rich asteroids to meet demand.
