http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/matter_energy/physics/ Physics News and Research. Why is the universe more partial to matter than antimatter? How could fuel cells be more efficient? Read current science articles on physics. en-us Mon, 12 May 2008 03:05:01 EDT Mon, 12 May 2008 03:05:01 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/matter_energy/physics/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508164408.htm A new method of magnetic resonance imaging, much faster, more selective -- able to distinguish even among different target molecular species -- and many thousands of times more sensitive, has just been developed. The new technique has the capacity to choose among targets by slight adjustments in temperature. Mon, 12 May 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508164408.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508164412.htm Scientists have developed a new technique for fabricating nanowire photonic and electronic integrated circuits that may one day be suitable for high-volume commercial production. The fabrication technique could yield low-cost, scalable nanowire photonic and electronic circuits. Sun, 11 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508164412.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508100718.htm How does light pass through a tiny hole? For the first time, scientists have succeeded in mapping this process in detail. Their research also promises a significant improvement in Terahertz microscopy in the long term, a potentially interesting new imaging technique, and Terahertz microspectroscopy, a technique for identifying tiny quantities of substances using light. Sat, 10 May 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508100718.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508164631.htm Designer labels have a lot of cachet -- a principle that's equally true in fashion and physics. The future of nuclear physics is in designer isotopes -- the relatively new power scientists have to make specific rare isotopes to solve scientific problems and open doors to new technologies, according to some physicists. Fri, 09 May 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508164631.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080505072755.htm For the first time, physicists have come up with a scheme that would allow a quantum mechanical expert to win every time in a con game with a victim who only knows about classical physics. Prior quantum cons have typically been vulnerable to simple countermeasures. Tue, 06 May 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080505072755.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080502110829.htm Reading about a "random laser" for the first time, you might wonder whether this term refers to the laser in your CD player which plays the song titles in the random shuffle mode. In physics, however, "random lasers" refer to a class of microlasers which use the principle of random light scattering as an integral part of the laser operation. In conventional lasers light is trapped between two highly reflecting mirrors where it is amplified by pumping from outside. Only when this amplification process is efficient enough, the laser begins to operate. Mon, 05 May 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080502110829.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080430103109.htm Researchers have produced tiny liquid crystal devices with electrodes made from graphene -- an exciting development that could lead to computer and TV displays based on this technology. They report on the use of graphene as a transparent conductive coating for electro-optical devices -- and show that its high transparency and low resistivity make it ideal for electrodes in liquid crystal devices. Fri, 02 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080430103109.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428203354.htm It was hard to understand how a graphene sheet -- a featureless, flat sheet of carbon atoms -- lying on an equally featureless iridium surface, somehow converted itself into a kind of muffin tin that formed "muffins" made from newly arrived iridium atoms. The muffins were equally spaced and of equal size. Graphene flakes are notoriously difficult to work with. Still, they are stronger than diamond, better heat-shedders and conductors than silicon, and thought to have great potential in the worlds of microelectronics and sensors. If only they could be tamed. Thu, 01 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428203354.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428104525.htm Soil "unearthed" at the nanoscale: Soil scientists have seen -- for the first time -- seen soil at a scale of 50 nanometers. This view provided a beautiful glimpse of patterns, how carbon sequestration works, and what happens when soils get wet, warm and cool. Thu, 01 May 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428104525.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429170954.htm Researchers believe they can achieve a significant increase in the accuracy of one of the fundamental constants of nature by boosting an electron to an orbit as far as possible from the atomic nucleus that binds it. The experiment could put the modern theory of the atom to the most stringent tests yet. Thu, 01 May 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429170954.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428164259.htm An advance by physicists improves our understanding of how light interacts with matter, and could make possible the development of new integrated-circuit technologies that result in faster computers that use less energy. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428164259.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428123555.htm Quantum cryptography may be essentially solved, but getting the funky physics to work on disciplined computer networks is a whole new headache. Cryptography is an arms race, but the finish line may be fast approaching. Up to now, each time the codemakers made a better mousetrap, codebreakers breed a better mouse. But quantum cryptography theoretically could outpace the codebreakers and win the race. Forever. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428123555.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428135243.htm Researchers have precisely measured the forces required to peel tiny nanotubes off of other materials, opening up the possibility of creating standards for nano-manufacturing and harnessing a gecko's ability to walk up walls. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428135243.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424212327.htm Transistors are an indispensable building block in electric appliances, where they amplify weak electric currents. Now researchers have developed a new type of transistor that is 50 times more energy efficient than today's models. It is also the first to be developed using nanotechnology. Sat, 26 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424212327.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424130707.htm Scientists from Princeton University have found that one of the most intriguing phenomena in condensed-matter physics -- known as the quantum Hall effect -- can occur in nature in a way that no one has ever before seen. The 'quantum Hall-like effect' was found in a bulk material without an applied magnetic field. The work, while significant in a fundamental way, could also lead to advances in new kinds of fast quantum or "spintronic" computing devices, of potential use in future electronic technologies. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424130707.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422155735.htm The microscopic structure of the human brain is almost incomprehensibly complicated, composed of trillions of interconnections between tens of billions of neurons. Understanding this circuitry, the aim of modern neuroscience, is a laudable goal for fundamental as well as neurological health care reasons. Exploring the brain's microcircuitry has traditionally been done by lining up tiny electrodes within or near single neurons to probe their electrical activity. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422155735.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422155058.htm Early miners used to carry canaries into coal mines because the birds were sensitive to certain gasses. Modern chemical analysis does the same thing, though much more powerfully. For instance, infrared spectroscopy can detect even trace amounts of a wide range of chemicals, including toxic components of hazardous waste or chemical weapons, because many chemicals absorb light in the mid-infrared band. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422155058.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422123058.htm Chemical engineers have developed a "self-assembling" method that could lead to an inexpensive way of making diamondlike crystals to improve optical communications and other technologies. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422123058.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422160001.htm The exchange of information between distant sources is the basis of all communications, but quantum mechanics may open up this distant exchange as never before. Quantum key distribution, for instance, would allow for absolutely secure encryption of information exchange by encoding information keys on single photons. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422160001.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422160243.htm Silicon is the workhorse among semiconductors in electronics. But in opto-electronics, where light signals are processed along with electronic signals, a semiconductor that is capable of emitting light is needed, which silicon can't do very well. Here gallium-arsenide (GaAs) is the workhorse, especially in the creation of light emitting diodes (LED) and LED lasers. Scientists have now grown GaAs structures into the shape of narrow needles which, when optically pumped, emit light with high brightness. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080422160243.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080418141246.htm A new computer simulation reveals a self-healing behavior that repairs radiation-induced damage in yttria-stabilized zirconia, indicating that the engineered ceramic may be suitable for use in development of radiation-resistant materials for nuclear power plants and nuclear waste storage. Tue, 22 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080418141246.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417142457.htm Researchers have discovered that certain organic -- or carbon-based -- molecules exhibit the properties of atoms under certain circumstances and, in turn, conduct electricity as well as metal. Detailed in Science, the finding is a breakthrough in developing nanotechnology that provides a new strategy for designing electronic materials, including inexpensive and multifunctional organic conductors that have long been considered the key to smaller, cheaper and faster technologies. Mon, 21 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417142457.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417155913.htm When a tiny, quantum-scale, hypothetical balloon is popped in a vacuum, do the particles inside spread out all over the place as predicted by classical mechanics? A Nature paper answers the question, which is deceptively complex and bears on quantum computing and information theory. Sun, 20 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417155913.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417142452.htm Researchers have used the world's thinnest material to create the world's smallest transistor, one atom thick and ten atoms wide. The smaller the size of their transistors the better they perform, say the Manchester researchers. Fri, 18 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080417142452.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416161226.htm Chemists have determined that the element chromium displays electrical properties of magnets in surprising ways. This finding can be used in the emerging field of "spintronics," which might someday contribute to new and more energy efficient ways of processing and storing data. Fri, 18 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416161226.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080411101936.htm Some of the most challenging problems in science concern the behavior of the most commonplace compound on the planet's surface -- water. But some of the mysteries are now being unravelled by the latest analysis and imaging techniques in an unfolding story that was presented at a recent conference organized by the European Science Foundation focusing on interaction between water and other compounds at the molecular level. Thu, 17 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080411101936.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415143816.htm Gravitational radiation -- widely expected to provide "smoking gun" proof for a theory of the early universe known as "inflation" -- can be produced by another mechanism, according to physics researchers. Thu, 17 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415143816.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415193420.htm A new artificial material may mark the beginning of a revolution in the development of materials for electronic applications. The new material, a superlattice, which has a multilayer structure composed of alternating atomically thin layers of two different oxides, possesses properties radically different to either of the two materials by themselves. These new properties are a direct consequence of the artificially layered structure and are driven by interactions at the atomic scale at the interfaces between the layers. Wed, 16 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415193420.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080410140538.htm For more than 20 years since the discovery of high-temperature superconductivity, scientists have been debating the underlying physical mechanism for this exotic phenomenon. Now, provocative results yielded by two years of experiments carried out at Princeton University have a group of scientists saying that high-temperature superconductivity does not hinge on a magical glue binding electrons together. The secret to superconductivity, they say, may rest instead on the ability of electrons to take advantage of their natural repulsion in a complex situation. Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080410140538.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408144820.htm Computer scientists are one step closer to realizing distributed quantum computing. They recently demonstrated one of the basic building blocks for distributed quantum computing using entangled photons generated in optical fibers. Wed, 09 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408144820.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408160614.htm Superinsulation may sound like a marketing gimmick for a drafty attic or winter coat. But it is actually a newly-discovered fundamental state of matter created by scientists. This discovery both opens new directions of inquiry in condensed matter physics and breaks ground for a new generation of microelectronics. Wed, 09 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408160614.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408085449.htm The Texas Petawatt laser reached greater than one petawatt of laser power on Monday morning, March 31, making it the highest powered laser in the world. When the laser is turned on, it has the power output of more than 2,000 times the output of all power plants in the United States. Wed, 09 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408085449.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080407101854.htm Nano-physicists have made a discovery that could change the way data is stored on computers. In the future it will be possible to store data much faster, and with more accuracy. A computer has two equally important elements: computing power and memory. Traditionally, scientists have developed these two elements in parallel. Now computer scientists have made a step towards a new means of data-storage, in which electricity and magnetism are combined in a new transistor concept. Tue, 08 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080407101854.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408144812.htm Escalating oil and gas prices along with the global challenge of climate change has in the past few years spurred a generation of scientists to pursue alternative energy sources while redirecting the focus away from fossil fuels. What is the current status, limitations and future challenges of alternative energy sources? Tue, 08 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080408144812.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080406114739.htm Those exploring the uncharted seas at the fringes of the Periodic Table of the Elements have landed on one long-sought island -- the fabled Island of Stability, home of a new genre of superheavy chemical elements sought for more than three decades. Researchers now are eying other islands on the more-distant fringes of the periodic table. Mon, 07 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080406114739.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402100014.htm Scientists have succeeded in cooling atoms of a rare-earth element, erbium, to within two millionths of a degree of absolute zero using a novel trapping and laser cooling technique. Potential applications range from nanoscale sensors to quantum computing. Sat, 05 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402100014.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403131859.htm A modern computer contains two different types of components: magnetic components, which perform memory functions, and semiconductor components, which perform logic operations. Computer scientists are working to combine these two functions in a single hybrid material. This new material would allow seamless integration of memory and logical functions and is expected to permit the design of devices that operate at much higher speeds and use considerably less power than current electronic devices. Thu, 03 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403131859.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080331172528.htm Medical scientists have developed a new type of imaging system that can illuminate tumors in living subjects-getting pictures with a precision of nearly one-trillionth of a meter. Wed, 02 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080331172528.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080331112030.htm Chemists have now demonstrated that hydrogen can be efficiently stored in nanoparticles. This allows hydrogen storage to be more easily used in mobile applications such as futuristic hydrogen cars. 30 nanometer particles of the metal hydride sodium alanate make the favorable extraction and storage of hydrogen possible. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080331112030.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330212029.htm Researchers have observed, through a microscope, plasmons on the surface of conductors measuring 30 nanometers. The use of such plasmons, signals that are at the limit of electronics and optics, is becoming, on this scale, an important issue for the much sought-after miniaturization of electronic circuits. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330212029.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330220036.htm Physicists have, for the first time ever, successfully compressed an unstable nucleus, Nickel 56. This nucleus is not found on Earth but is present when a star explodes at the end of its life (supernova). This breakthrough opens up the possibility of compressing several hundred exotic nuclei, which have, until now, been inaccessible because of their instability. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330220036.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330140037.htm Frustrated by tape that won't peel off the roll in a straight line? Angry at wallpaper that refuses to tear neatly off the wall? A new study reveals why these efforts can be so aggravating. Wallpaper is not out to foil you -- it's just obeying the laws of physics. Mon, 31 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330140037.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330144843.htm A six-inch robotic spy plane modeled after a bat is being developed to gather data from sights, sounds and smells in urban combat zones and transmit information back to a soldier in real time. Mon, 31 Mar 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080330144843.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328070113.htm As steady increases in computing capability continue, some new technology will have to take over from silicon. Carbon nanotubes and superconductors may be the answer. The silicon chip, which has supplied several decades' worth of remarkable increases in computing power and speed, looks unlikely to be capable of sustaining this pace for more than another decade -- in fact, some say, the conventional silicon chip has no longer than four years left to run. Sun, 30 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328070113.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328094140.htm A new physics discovery explores why there is more matter than antimatter in the universe. The paper reveals that investigation into the process of B-meson decays has given insight into why there is more matter than antimatter in the universe. Sun, 30 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328094140.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328101532.htm For the first time, physicists have been able to identify individual returning photons after firing and reflecting them off of a space satellite in orbit almost 1,500 kilometers above the earth. The experiment has proven the possibility of constructing a quantum channel between Space and Earth. Sat, 29 Mar 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328101532.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328110040.htm New research has turned the heat up on terahertz technology, bringing a handheld terahertz device a step closer to reality. Scientists have recorded the highest operating temperature for a terahertz quantum cascade laser -- a technology that scientists believe may unlock the potential of the terahertz frequency range. Sat, 29 Mar 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328110040.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327172255.htm A team of physicists and engineers has demonstrated exquisite control of single particles of light -- photons -- on a silicon chip to make a major advance towards the long sought after goal of a super-powerful quantum computer. Fri, 28 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327172255.htm